cannabisnews.com: Prospects for Cannabinoid Drug Development





Prospects for Cannabinoid Drug Development
Posted by FoM on March 10, 1999 at 16:39:07 PT

February 23 - 24, 1998Washington, DCMeeting SummaryThis was the third in a series of three sessions held to gather information for the Institute of Medicine’s study on the Medical Use of Marijuana: Assessment of the Science Base. 
The session consisted of a two-day meeting that was open to the public. The meeting began with a public hearing, in which individuals gave testimony on their experience with marijuana to relieve nausea and/or anorexia associated with AIDS and chemotherapy; pain, muscle spasticity and/or swelling associated with arthritis, reflex sympathetic dystrophy and nail patella syndrome; and interocular pressure associated with glaucoma. Two participants presented their experiences with melatonin to relieve some of the side effects associated with cannabis, advocates voiced their concern for the medical needs of patients who cannot wait for the development of new cannabinoid drugs, and others presented the history of cannabis use. Lastly, a participant discussed her concerns toward legalizing marijuana and the use of a plant for medicine instead of the isolated active components of the plant. The second day of the meeting was devoted to presentations of scientific studies relevant to the development of Cannabinoid drugs. This scientific session was divided into three areas, Overviews of Previous Workshops, Drug Development, and Drug Delivery. The following is a brief description of each speaker’s presentation.Overviews of Previous WorkshopsBilly Martin summarized basic cannabinoid biology presented at the first and second meetings, which included brain and peripheral receptors, endogenous ligands, agonists and antagonists, signaling biochemistry, and pharmacology. Eric Larson summarized the clinical evidence for cannabinoids in the treatment of anorexia and weight loss seen in AIDS patients, nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy, spasticity, chronic pain and glaucoma. He also reviewed the effect of smoking marijuana with respect to lung disease and cancer development. George Koob discussed neurobiology of cannabis dependence, including positive and negative reinforcing properties, dopamine systems in the brain, and corticotrophin releasing factor in withdraw responses. Drug Development J. Richard Crout presented an overview of the Food and Drug Administration’s requirements, principals, and polices for drug development. This included approaches under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act; for cigarettes; for botanical and herbal remedies; and the possibility for legitimizing substances, like marijuana, for medical use. Robert Dudley discussed the commercial side of drug development, including the regulatory history of Marinol in the United States, the value of researching and developing new drugs and the marketing involved in distributing new drugs. David Pate of HortaPharm, a private firm in the Netherlands, discussed the company’s plans to grow cannabis as a potential raw material for the manufacture of pharmaceuticals. This included studying the effects of environmental conditions on the content of different cannabinoids in the cannabis plant, and creating technical solutions for medical objections to using the herbal form of cannabis as a therapeutic agent.Drug DeliveryPhyllis Gardner reviewed five routes of drug delivery: oral, transdermal, transmucosal, inhalation and parenteral. She discussed route-dependent pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamic profiles, along with potential delivery routes for cannabinoids. Reid Rubsamen presented information on the history, state of the art and future trends for drug delivery through the respiratory tract. He discussed the potential role of inhalation delivery for cannabinoids and a new system for intrapulmonary delivery of morphine. Mahendra Dedhiya reviewed the literature on cannabinoid drug delivery, challenges presented by -9-THC and designing delivery systems from a formulation science perspective. Mahmoud ElSohly presented information on the development of a suppository formulation of -9-THC. He also presented data on the absorption and bioavailability of THC hemisuccinate. http://www2.nas.edu/medical-mj/2322.html
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