Rare Cannabinoid for Neurodegenerative Diseases
InMed has expanded its pharmaceutical pipeline to investigate rare cannabinoids for their potential in treating neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, Huntington’s Disease and others.
Early data demonstrates rare cannabinoid potential in treating neurodegenerative disease
InMed has conducted research demonstrating how a specific rare cannabinoid inhibits or slows the progression of neurodegenerative disease. The rare cannabinoid demonstrated neuroprotective effects in a population of affected neurons and promoted neurite outgrowth, signifying the potential to enhance neuronal function.
Two cannabinoid analogs identified to advance into in vivo studies in neurodegenerative disease
InMed has investigated several cannabinoids to understand and compare their effects in studies of neurodegenerative disease. Two cannabinoid analogs, from InMed’s 900 Series library of potential candidates, showing the most promising effects in neuroprotection and enhanced neuronal function have been selected to advance to in vivo studies in neurodegenerative disease.
Funding grant received and study to be conducted in collaboration with academia
InMed’s in vivo studies in neurodegenerative disease will be funded in part by a grant awarded to Dr. Ujendra Kumar of the faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at UBC from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), with InMed as the named industry partner. The funding will support the research and development studies of InMed’s cannabinoid pharmaceutical candidates, investigating their potential therapeutic effects in neurodegenerative diseases. The collaboration project is entitled “Pharmacological characterization of phytocannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system.”
International patent application filed for use of rare cannabinoid in treating neuronal disorders
InMed has filed an international patent application entitled “Compositions and Methods for Treating Neuronal Disorders with Cannabinoids” for use of a rare cannabinoid in the potential treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. This Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) application specifies a rare cannabinoid that may inhibit or slow the progression of neurodegenerative diseases by providing neuroprotection in a population of affected neurons. Furthermore, the PCT application also demonstrates the subject cannabinoid compound can also be used to promote neurite outgrowth, which signifies the potential to enhance neuronal function.
InMed’s Neurodegenerative Disease Study Presented at Canadian Neuroscience Meeting
The InMed sponsored research, entitled “Cannabinoids modulate cytotoxicity and neuritogenesis in Amyloid-beta-treated neuronal cells,” demonstrated the ability of a specific rare cannabinoid that reduces amyloid toxicity and tau protein expression while enhancing neuronal cell growth and neuritogenesis markers in vitro, all considered to be important targets in the potential treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Studies have shown that cannabinoids, via their endocannabinoid receptors (CB1R and CB2R) that naturally occur in the human body and brain, reduce amyloid-beta (“Aβ”) toxicity, decrease p-tau protein expression and provide neurite outgrowth, thus improving neuronal viability and function.
The research was conducted in the laboratory of Dr. Ujendra Kumar and Dr. Rishi Somvanshi of the faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of British Columbia.
Cannabinoids and their potential role in neuronal disorders
Several published in vitro and in vivo studies have been conducted to understand the effects of different cannabinoids in neuronal disorders. There are a number of cannabinoid receptors or endocannabinoids, such as CB1, GPR6, GPR55 and 2-AG, that are expressed in the brain. Cannabinoids are highly lipophilic (dissolves in fats, oils and lipids) and can cross the blood brain barrier, making them potential pharmaceutical targets for neurodegenerative disease.
Rare cannabinoid pharmaceutical pipeline
Our therapeutic candidate for neurodegenerative disease is our third rare cannabinoid pharmaceutical development program. INM-755 cannabinol (CBN) cream has completed a Phase 2 clinical trial and the Company will evaluate strategic partnership for further development in the treatment of EB or other itch-related skin conditions. Our second program, INM-088, is a CBN eye drop formulation in preclinical studies investigating its potential as a treatment for glaucoma. Our neurodegenerative disease program applies a different rare cannabinoid from our lead program and has demonstrated neuronal effects in the potential treatment of neurodegenerative disease.
