NEWCASTLE, AUSTRALIA, 10 Dec 20 – CannaPacific, an Australian biotechnology company focused on the cannabinoid pharmaceutical sector today announced a partnership with the CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, to trial novel encapsulation technologies for more effective medicinal cannabinoids.
Current oral medicinal cannabis products have low and inconsistent bioavailability — which refers to the proportion of the medicinal substance absorbed by the body in order to have an active effect — leading to inconsistent therapeutic benefit.
CannaPacific has commenced a proof-of-concept study of the encapsulation technology, developed in collaboration between CSIRO’s Probing Biosystems Future Science Platform and The University of Queensland’s Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN).
Dr Alison White, inventor of the technology and CSIRO-AIBN postdoctoral research fellow said mineral-based thin shells were used to completely surround the cannabinoid with a protective barrier to form a microcapsule.
“This barrier is designed to prevent premature release of the drug, and allows a higher level of control over where and when the drug is released,” Dr White said.
“By controlling the dissolution rate of the microcapsules, we anticipate a more consistent delivery of the cannabinoids into the bloodstream.”
The greater control this technology will provide is anticipated to remedy the current inconsistency of oil-based cannabinoid products. When coupled with optimised formulations of specific cannabinoid medicines, this improved delivery should reduce variability and allow for the preparation of more effective cannabinoid medicines.
“The initial project will be a proof of concept for CSIRO technology when applied to the delivery of cannabinoid-based medicines, and this forms one of a suite of research projects being undertaken by CannaPacific in order to improve the quality of cannabinoid-based medicines” said Tim Bowser, CannaPacific’s Chief Scientific Officer.
CannaPacific aims to be leaders in providing the best in class cannabinoid products, providing prescribers with more certainty around the use of cannabis based products and patients with better outcomes.