Questions? +1 (202) 335-3939 Login
Trusted News Since 1995
A service for global professionals · Thursday, March 28, 2024 · 699,600,961 Articles · 3+ Million Readers

Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals’ Scientific Team Leads Cannabinoid Research Showing Potential to Impact Neurodegenerative Diseases

British Journal of Pharmacology publishes new research results supporting the potential of THCA to provide neuroprotection

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 20, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals Inc. (EHP), a development-stage company focused on treating life-threatening diseases through cannabinoid science, is pleased to report that key members of its scientific team have made a novel discovery indicating the potential of tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA), a naturally occurring non-psychotropic cannabinoid, to treat Huntington’s disease and other metabolic, neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases. These results were published in the British Journal of Pharmacology in a paper entitled, “Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid is a potent PPARγ agonist with neuroprotective activity.”

The EHP scientific team has previously proven that novel, modified cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG) derivatives have potent peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) and cannabinoid receptor type 2 (CB2) activity and have also hit other disease modifying targets. EHP is currently developing drug candidates based on these cannabinoid derivatives for multiple sclerosis, scleroderma, Huntington’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. These data were previously published in Nature, Scientific Reports.

This recent article in the British Journal of Pharmacology focused on the activity of Δ9-THCA, one of the most common cannabinoids (and a non-psychotropic precursor of THC), on PPARγ. PPARγ signalling has a role in neuroinflammation and epilepsy. Δ9-THCA is a potent PPARγ agonist and in this study exhibited neuroprotective and anti-neuroinflammatory activity in an animal model of Huntington´s disease.

This research was conducted at Instituto Maimónides de Investigación Biomédica de Córdoba (IMIBIC). Co-authors of this paper included Eduardo Muñoz, MD, PhD, EHP’s Chief Scientific Officer; Mari Luz Bellido, PhD, EHP’s Vice President of European Operations; Gaetano Morello, ND, an EHP director and scientific consultant; and two scientific and technical advisors to EHP (through VivaCell Biotechnology, a research consultant to EHP), Giovanni Appendino, PhD, and Stefan Meyer.

“There are many patients suffering from neurodegenerative diseases that do not have access to effective treatments and cannabinoids represent a potentially effective solution. Publications like these provide evidence that cannabinoids hold significant pharmacological potential,” said Eduardo Muñoz, PhD, EHP’s Chief Scientific Officer, Professor of Immunology at the University of Córdoba, and corresponding author of the paper.

“Drs. Muñoz and Appendino have been pioneers in, and at the forefront of, cannabinoid research for the past two decades. We congratulate them on their ground-breaking cannabinoid research and again being published in this respected journal,” said Jim DeMesa, MD, CEO of Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals. “As we advance our preclinical work around our two novel cannabinoid drugs targeting neurodegenerative, auto-immune, and other life-threatening diseases, we look forward to continuing to work with these outstanding scientists as we work to initiate a Phase I human clinical study planned for 2018.”

Join us on our journey to address life-threatening diseases through cannabinoid science.

About Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals is focused on developing its library of proprietary, synthetic cannabinoid-derivative drug candidates for the treatment of inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases. The company has two families of new chemical entities, based on CBD and CBG, that it has modified through rational drug design to affect validated receptors pertinent to targeted diseases. Its first drug candidate, EHP-101, is focused on treating multiple sclerosis and scleroderma. Its second, EHP-102, is focused on treating Huntington’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. The company is advancing preclinical development with the intent to launch a Phase I clinical study in 2018. For more information, visit www.emeraldpharma.life. Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals is part of the Emerald Health group, which comprises multiple companies advancing diverse botanical, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical products that may provide wellness and medical benefits by interacting with the body’s important endocannabinoid system.

For investor and media contacts:

invest@emeraldpharma.life

To the extent statements contained in this news release are not descriptions of historical facts regarding Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals Inc. they should be considered “forward-looking statements,” as described in the private securities litigation reform act of 1995, that reflect management’s current beliefs and expectations. You can identify forward-looking statements by words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “goal,” “hope,” “hypothesis,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “strategy,” “will,” “would,” or the negative of those terms, and similar expressions that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes. Forward-looking statements contained in these presentations include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: (i) the success and timing of our product development activities and clinical trials; (ii) our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates; (iii) our plans to research, discover, evaluate and develop additional potential product, technology and business candidates and opportunities; (iv) our and our partners’ ability to develop, manufacture and commercialize our product candidates and to improve the manufacturing process; (v) the size and growth potential of the markets for our product candidates, and our ability to serve those markets; (vi) the rate and degree of acceptance of our product candidates; (vii) our ability to attract and retain key scientific or management personnel; (viii) the anticipated timing of clinical data availability; (ix) our ability to meet our milestones; (x) our expectations regarding our ability to obtain and maintain intellectual property protection; (xi) the level of our corporate expenditures; (xii) the assessment of our technology by potential corporate partners; and (xiii) the impact of capital market conditions on us. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown factors, risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements. Emerald Health Pharmaceuticals’ investigational drug products have not been approved or cleared by the FDA.

Primary Logo

Powered by EIN News


EIN Presswire does not exercise editorial control over third-party content provided, uploaded, published, or distributed by users of EIN Presswire. We are a distributor, not a publisher, of 3rd party content. Such content may contain the views, opinions, statements, offers, and other material of the respective users, suppliers, participants, or authors.

Submit your press release