Chemical Diversity of Cannabis Plant and Its Contribution to Cannabis-Based Medicine

Ewa Kozela, Nextage Cannabis Innovation Center, Ness Ziona , Israel (ewak@nextar.co.il)

Cannabis plant contains around 400 chemical compounds.  More than 100 of them are specific for the plant and known as cannabinoids.  THC and CBD are the most abundant cannabinoids with variety of beneficial bioactivities such as analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-emetic and neuroprotective properties.  Increasing scientific evidence shows that so called “minor” or “hemp” cannabinoids as well as over 200 mono- and sesquiterpenoids present in Cannabis offer potential therapeutic value, either alone or in synergy with THC or CBD. 

In this talk I will summarize the biological effects of Cannabis derived compounds, addressing its additive, synergistic as well as antagonistic interactions.  Moreover, I will address main challenges in cannabinoid and terpenoid extraction, isolation and stability.  Understanding the chemical processing of the Cannabis plant may advance its future medical use, including improved standardization, efficacy and safety of Cannabis-based formulations.

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Short Biography of Presenting Author

Dr Ewa Kozela is currently the chief scientist of Nextage Cannabis Innovation Center in Ness Tziona, Israel. Dr Kozela is a neurobiologist with expertise in brain pharmacology. Her main research interests focused on biological effects of plant derived molecules such as opiates and cannabinoids and involved projects carried out in research institutes in Israel, Poland and USA. Over the last 11 years she was the scientist in the Weizmann Institute of Science and at the Tel Aviv University, studying therapeutic effects of the main Cannabis constituents and their synthetic derivatives in neuroinflammatory diseases.