Renowned Israeli cannabis researcher Prof. Raphael Mechoulam announced on October 26 that he would begin research on efficacy of CBD treatment on asthma.
He, Dr. Francesca Levi-Shaffer, and a team from the Multidisciplinary Center on Cannabis Research at Hebrew University will conduct the research. UK biotech startup CIITECH has commissioned the studies.
In 1964, Mechoulam was the first researcher to single out cannabinoid THC–the psychoactive component of cannabis–and he is recognized globally as the foremost expert on cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system.
Israeli21c.com said that Mechoulam’s team would focus on “a possible inhibitory effect of a derivative of cannabidiol (CBD) on allergic airway inflammation.”
“We are looking forward to investigating whether the anti-inflammatory properties of CBD will work in treating this disease,” Mechoulam said.
Other conditions currently being researched in Israel for treatment with medical cannabis include diabetes, heart disease, autism, and inflammatory bowel disease.
CIITECH founder Clifton Flack is also founder at UK’s EssentialCannabinoids.co.uk and co-founder of iCAN-Israel Cannabis. In addition to the research commission with Drs. Mechoulam and Levi-Shaffer, iCAN-Israel Cannabis is currently running clinical trials on a cannabinoid formulation for insomnia.
Academic and clinical research on cannabis in the United States continues to be prohibited by marijuana’s status as a Schedule 1 drug, which places it in the same category as heroin and cocaine, and also defines cannabis as having “no medicinal value.”
