180 Life Sciences Corp. File Provisional Patent Detailing the Combination of CBD with GLP-1 Agonists to Suppress Appetite

Recently, 180 Life Sciences Corp. (180LS) announced that they had filed a provisional patent expressing how the combination of cannabidiol (CBD) or an analog, with glucagon related peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists can be used to help solve the problem of obesity and weight management by suppressing appetite (1). Through the co-administration of CBD, which is a known antiemetic and appetite suppressant, it is predicted to limit both the possibly harmful side effects and lower the effective dosage of the GLP-1 agonists.

Through research, CBD has exhibited the ability to reduce inflammation and stimulate satiety. The issue though has been figuring out the specific details of the mode of action which has been challenging due to CBD binding to more than 50 different biological receptors. In 180 Life Sciences Corp.’s press release (1), they said, “Consequently, we believe the scientific community has assumed the clinical benefits arise from a summation of weak stimulations of a spectrum of molecular pathways, rather than a single, critical biological signal. However, the recent clinical success of GLP-1 agonists in stimulating satiety and resultant weight reduction in patients with type 2 diabetes led 180LS scientists to hypothesize that CBD and GLP-1 might stimulate a common therapeutic pathway.” The two drugs are dramatically different in structure which means that binding them to a common receptor is unlikely. Additionally, they added, “but we speculate that the two compounds could stimulate a common neurological pathway between the gut and the brain. GLP-1 signals satiety to the brain through stimulation of specific GLP-1 receptors expressed on the afferent arm of the vagus nerve. Scientists at 180 Life Sciences plan to collaborate with neurological experts to investigate whether cannabidiol (CBD) stimulates satiety through a neural pathway involving the vagus nerve,” (1). 180 Life Sciences Corp. is currently working on negotiations with 3rd party scientists to come together and work on a research collaboration where they will design and conduct testing of their hypothesis.

In this research collaboration, they plan to discover if CBD and GLP-1 can encourage a common signal for satiety in the brain. If this hypothesis proves to be true, it may show that CBD represents a cheaper alternative with fewer side effects than GLP-1 agonists to be used in losing weight. The organization holds patent based on the work of the late Dr. Mechoulam (1,2), who is better known as the “father of cannabis”. His work shows how synthetic CBD compounds that could encourage appetite suppression and also be useful as a therapeutic for weight management and obesity.

“We are excited about the opportunity to collaborate with scientists who are experts in vagus nerve signaling,” said Dr. James Woody, CEO of 180 Life Sciences Corp. (1), who continued, “We expect, if the hypothesis is correct, this research could provide support to proceed to human clinical trials. Our Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Jonathan Rothbard, was involved in the Amylin discovery work of the GLP-1 pathway and has extensive scientific knowledge of how synthetic CBD compounds might induce satiety through stimulating the vagus nerve.”

References

1. 180 Life Sciences Corp. 180 Life Sciences Corp.. Announces the Filing of A Provisional Patent Describing the Combination of CBD with GLP-1 Agonists to Suppress Appetite https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2023/07/31/2714846/0/en/180-Life-Sciences-Corp-Announces-the-Filing-of-a-Provisional-Patent-Describing-the-Combination-of-CBD-With-GLP-1-Agonists-to-Suppress-Appetite.html (accessed Jul 31, 2023).
2. McEvoy, E. In Memoriam: Raphael Mechoulam, “Father of Cannabis Research” https://www.cannabissciencetech.com/view/in-memoriam-raphael-mechoulam-father-of-cannabis-research (accessed Jul 31, 2023).