Cannabis extraction

Based on the role of endocannabinoids and cannabinoid receptors in several pathological conditions, the pharmacological manipulation of their levels or action is being developed as a therapeutic strategy. Enhancement of endocannabinoid signalling when this plays uniquely a protective role can be effected in a safer way using (i) cannabis extracts in which the presence of non-psychotropic cannabinoids with therapeutic activity per... 

Obtained from protein isolation, not heterologously expressed Determined by purified Cannabis extract Determined by recombinant proteins isolates... 

Other therapeutic uses of cannabinoid agonists have been reported. The potential of cannabinoids as a treatment for asthma is supported experimentally. A CBi agonist, (i )-methanandamide (21), inhibited nerve growth factor (NGF)-induced airway hyperresponsiveness in vivo [251]. The antipruritic effect of cannabinoids has been reported, the action being mediated by both CBi and CB2 pathways [252]. Treatment with cannabis extract improved urinary tract symptoms of multiple sclerosis patients significantly in an open-label pilot study [253]. 

Wade D, Robson P, House H, Makela P, Aram J. (2003) A preliminary controlled study to determine whether whole-plant cannabis extracts can improve intractable neurogenic symptoms. Clin Rehabil 17 21-29. 

In the past 25 years, anecdotal reports of beneficial effects in MS sufferers of smoking Cannabis (the herb or resin of Cannabis sativa L.) have resulted in a considerable amount of research and interest from academia, industry and government. Several products containing cannabis extracts or carefully standardized mixtures of constituents are in development with a number of clinical trials being carried out. In a few countries, products... 

CS012 Dixit, V. P. and N. K. Lohiya. Effects of cannabis extract on the response of accessory sex organs of adult male mice to testosterone. Indian J Physiol Pharmacol 1975 19 98-100. 

CS141 Sethi, N., P. K. Agnihotri and S. Srivastava. Aminopyrine-n-demethy-lase activity of rat liver after adminis- CS152 tration of crude cannabis extract. 

CS174 Dixit, V. P., M. AryaandN. K. Lohiya. The effect of chronically administered cannabis extract on the female genital tract of mice and rats. Endokrinologie 1975 66 365-368. 

Effect of cannabis extract on uterine phosphatase activities in prepubertal rats. IRCS Med Sci Biochem 1980 8 25. 

Huizing and T. M. Malingre. Use of amberlite XAD-2 columns for the separation of cannabinoids from cannabis extracts. J Chromatogr 1981 205 444—450. 

CS216 Dixit, V. P., H. C. Jain, O. P. Verma and A. N. Sharma. Effects of cannabis extract on the testicular function of the toad Bufo andersonii Boulenger. Indian J Exp Biol 1977 15 555-556. 

Vieira, J. E. V., G. S. G. Barros, M. C. Medeiros, F. J. A. Matos, M. P. Souza and M. J. Medeiros. Pharmacologic screening of plants from Northeast Brazil. II. Rev Brasil Farm 1968 49 67-75. Dixit, V. P., V. N. Sharma and N. K. Lohiya. The effect of chronically administered cannabis extract on the testicular function of mice. Eur J Pharmacol 1974 26 111-114. Pinheiro de Sousa, M. and M. Z. Rouquayrol. Molluscicidal activity of plants from Northeast Brazil. Rev Bras... 

P. Jobin, et al. Efficacy, safety and tolerability of an orally administered cannabis extract in the treatment of spasticity in patients with multiple sclerosis a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study. 

CS278 Whalley, B. J., J. D. Wilkinson, E. M. Williamson, and A. Constant . A novel component of cannabis extract potentiates excitatory synaptic transmission in rat olfactory cortex in vitro. Neurosci Lett 2004 365(1) 58-63. 

For many thousand years cannabis sativa has been a valuable source of hemp fibre. The (ab)use of its psychoactive constituents has also been know in many cultures for a very long time. With the advent of superior alternative medications the medical use of cannabis extracts faded in the last century. Cannabis was removed from the US Pharmacopoeia in 1942 and from the British Pharmacopoeia in 1976 when it was classified as a drug with no therapeutic benefit. 

Sir William Brooke O Shaughnessy introduced Indian hemp to the West in 1839. William Brooke O Shaughnessy entered the service of the East India Company in 1833 as assistant surgeon. He studied the botany and chemistry of herbs used in oriental medicine and incorporated some into his edition of the Bengal Pharmacopoeia published in 1842. One of these herbs was cannabis, or Indian hemp. His medical treatise recommended an extract from the plant for patients with rabies, cholera, tetanus, and infantile convulsions. Until the end of the 19th century prominent physicians of Europe and North America advocated cannabis extracts for the prevention and symptomatic treatment of migraine headache. 

Four new cannabinoids are reported from Cannabis extracts, cannabifuran (254 R = CHMe2), dehydrocannabifuran [254 R — C(Me)=CH2], cannabichromanone (255), and 2-keto-A3-THC.356... 

Cannabis also was used widely in the United States for many complaints. It was recognized as a therapeutic drug well into the 1900s. At that time cannabis extract was listed for varying periods of time in the United States Pharmacopeia, the National Formulary, and the United States Dispensatory. In the Dispensatory, for example, cannabis was recommended for treating neuralgia, gout, rheumatism, rabies, cholera, convulsions, hysteria, mental depression, delirium tremens, and insanity. 

Cannabinoids are a specific class of psychoactive compounds present in Indian cannabis (Cannabis sativa), including about 60 different molecules, the most representative being cannabinol, canna-bidiol and several isomers of tetrahydrocannabinol. Knowledge of the therapeutic activity of cannabis dates back to the ancient dynasties in China, where, already 5,000 years ago, cannabis was used for the treatment of asthma, migraine and some gynaecologic disorders. Said use later became so established that about in 1850 cannabis extracts were included in the US Pharmacopaeia and remained therein until 1947. 

Several investigations have been carried out over the years to isolate THC from the plant material, mostly to determine its chemical structure or to investigate the phytochemistry of the plant. In 1942, Wollner, et al., (11) reported the isolation of tetrahydrocannabinol from cannabis extract red oil . Red oil was prepared by extraction of the plant material with ether, followed by distillation of the concentrated extract at room pressure followed by redistillation under reduced pressure (15-50 mm Hg). 

Direct Treatment of Cannabis Extracts with Methanolic KOH Solution 70% THC Oil... 

Reprocessing of the Residue Left After Fractional Distillation of Cannabis Extracts 82% THC Yellow Oil... 

When O Shaughnessy returned to England in 1842, he brought back a quantity of cannabis and turned it over to pharmacist Peter Squire to convert to a form suitable for medical usage. This preparation came to be known as Squire s extract, and launched Squire and his sons into prominence as the main and most reliable suppliers of cannabis extract in England. 

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