Scientists in Israel are investigating three different cannabis products as possible treatment options for patients with COVID-19 disease. Israel-based subsidiary InnoCan Pharma Ltd with scientists from Tel Aviv University are creating the first COVID-19 treatment option. They are using cannabidiol (CBD) loaded exosomes, which are extracellular vesicles that contain protein and DNA/RNA of the cells from which they are excreted. Exosomes are responsible for cell-cell communication. CBD has anti-inflammatory properties, and the researchers were hoping these would be beneficial in treating infected lungs.
The treatment involves delivering CBD-loaded exosomes via inhalation to patients with a variety of lung infections. In animal studies, CBD has shown to reduce body inflammation, but so far there is no proof that this can alleviate COVID-19 symptoms.
The second study is being conducted at Israel’s Rabin Medical Center, and it involves combining CBD with steroids to treat COVID-19 patients. The researchers plan to test their treatment on 10 COVID-19 patients over the course of several weeks. If successful, they plan to expand the study to include an additional 40 COVID-19 patients. In their press release, the researchers comment: “Steroid treatment is usually the first or second line of treatment of hospitalized patients. CBD enhances the therapeutic effect of steroid treatment and treats the bio-mechanism affected by the virus.”
Ichilov Medical Center in Tel Aviv is conducting the third study to examine whether the anti-inflammatory properties of cannabis can slow lung infections in patients with COVID-19 disease. The researchers are conducting trials on CBD-based treatments on dozens of COVID-19 patients. Dr. Barak Cohen, one of the researchers behind the study says, “This is a novel approach to treating some of the symptoms, using a component of the cannabis plant that is considered safe and non-addictive.”