A researcher who announced last month that cannabis compounds prevented infection of human cells by the virus that causes Covid-19 revealed this week that preclinical trials are being planned to test the discovery. If successful, the research could lead to new medications to prevent or treat disease from SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes Covid-19.
“We need preclinical trials to prove the efficacy of what we discovered, and I think that will happen very soon, in the next few months,” Richard van Breemen, a researcher with Oregon State University’s Global Hemp Innovation Center, told local media.
Van Breeman and a team of researchers affiliated with OSU and Oregon Health & Science University found in a lab study that that two cannabinoid acids commonly found in hemp varietals of cannabis, cannabigerolic acid, or CBGA, and cannabidiolic acid, also known as CBDA, can bind to the characteristic spike protein of SARS-CoV-2. By binding to the spike protein, the compounds prevented the virus from entering human lung and skin cells and causing infection, potentially offering new medications to prevent and treat the disease.
“Orally bioavailable and with a long history of safe human use, these cannabinoids, isolated or in hemp extracts, have the potential to prevent as well as treat infection by SARS-CoV-2,” the researchers wrote in an abstract of the study, which was published online last month by the Journal of Natural Products.
Van Breemen noted that CBDA and CBGA blocked the action of emerging variants of the virus that causes Covid-19, saying that “our research showed the hemp compounds were equally effective against variants of SARS-CoV-2, including variant B.1.1.7, which was first detected in the United Kingdom, and variant B.1.351, first detected in South Africa.”
Product Development Already Underway
Although CBGA and CBDA can be found in some varieties of hemp, they are not commonly found in cannabis products readily available to consumers, at least not yet. But the presence of the compounds in legal varieties of cannabis make them good candidates for further research.
“These cannabinoid acids are abundant in hemp and in many hemp extracts,” van Breemen said last month. “They are not controlled substances like THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, and have a good safety profile in humans. And our research showed the hemp compounds were equally effective against variants of SARS-CoV-2.”
The study also revealed that the cannabinoid THCA had a similar effect against the virus. But because of the compound’s status as a Schedule 1 controlled substance, further research options are limited.
Preclinical research could point the way to viable medical therapies based on CBDA and CBGA. In the meantime, hemp companies are busy formulating new consumer products rich in the cannabinoids. Bao Le, the CEO and co-founder of Hhemp.co, says that the best method to deliver the cannabinoids in the study is orally, through products such as tinctures, gel capsules, and beverages.
“We are partnering with the extraction company that supplied CBGA and CBDA to the OSU Study to formulate a safe and effective dose of the cannabinoids to make these products,” Le writes in an email. “We aim to lead the market with lab-tested, direct sourced, formulations by a compound pharmacist and produced in an FDA-registered facility.”
“This is still new research that hopefully opens the pathway for more studies,” Le adds. “We hope that this breakthrough study will allow the hemp industry to step up and be able to receive grants and funding to continue the journey to develop more CBGA and CBDA genetics and improve in agricultural studies.”
Van Breemen’s research should not be interpreted as an indication that smoking marijuana or other forms of cannabis can help prevent or treat Covid-19. But the news has generated immense interest in cannabis’ potential effect on the coronavirus, encouraging other researchers around the globe and leading to flurry of activity to bring new CBDA and CBGA products to market.
“I’m delighted people are interested in the work we do, and I want to thank all of my students and postdocs and other collaborators over the years,” van Breemen said. “It’s been an honor working with a very talented team of people, and I’m just glad to have contributed something in the field of natural products and analytical chemistry.”
