A cannabis-based COVID-19 vaccine candidate

Researchers specializing in infectious diseases at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada are turning to cannabis as they work on a coronavirus vaccine. The research team says that a plant-based antigen may be easier to produce commercially on a large scale than animal-based antigens.

Zyus Life Sciences, a Canadian medical cannabis company, has partnered with the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization—International Vaccine Center (VIDO-InterVac) at the University of Saskatchewan to develop cannabis-derived proteins for a vaccine candidate.

How It Works

«We had a protein platform that we’d been working on for a number of years before we entered the cannabis space…,» he declared Brent Zettl, CEO of Zyus. «I asked [our team], »Do you think we could produce a vaccine using this type of protein with our other plant-based system?’ And they didn’t really understand why.”

Zettle went on to explain that its team is working with two different types of compounds. One is derived from cannabis, and the other from a different plant. These compounds are used to produce a protein that can be used in a COVID-19 vaccine candidate.

«The genetic information that VIDO-InterVac developed to identify the antigen that would work as a vaccine is actually a protein fragment. »We then take this DNA and insert it into a plant, which can then produce that same protein,” Zettl added.

According to Zettl, plant-based compounds may potentially be more effective than animal-based compounds because plants can produce proteins more easily, and these proteins are also better suited for large-scale production. The growing focus on animal welfare could also facilitate their adoption.

Dr. Paul Hodgson, a scientist at VIDO-InterVac, has declared ...that no one really knows today what a final vaccine candidate will look like. But with each vaccine trial, the scientific community learns more about the virus and the ways in which it can be combated.

Other initiatives are also exploring the potential of cannabis as a treatment for COVID-19. In the most widely reported study—which has not yet been peer-reviewed—certain cannabis extracts have significantly reduced the activity of viral receptors in artificial human tissue. Israeli researchers are also studying how cannabis compounds might help repair tissue damaged by COVID-19, particularly through the anti-inflammatory properties of CBD.