EAST LANSING, Mich. — A Michigan State University professor is currently researching compounds in the cannabis plant that could possibly help symptoms of COVID 19.
Norbert Kaminski, professor of pharmacology and toxicology at MSU,has been studying molecules in cannabis since 1990 to understand how they can be applied for therapeutic use.
Most recently, he has been working with GB Sciences, a biopharmaceutical company, to identify specific compounds in the plant that don’t have psychotropic properties but do have anti-inflammatory properties. This could lead to a drug that could help with inflamed lungs, which many people experience after contracting COVID 19.
“In the case of COVID, those individuals that really have serious health problems often have had too strong an immune response, which compromises the function of their lungs," Kaminski says. The idea is to use cannabinoids to permit the body to fight COVID but help a patient's lung function.
The research is still in the early phases, so it may take time before any new drug is released.
Kaminski is hopeful a new drug could be used for cancer treatments as well.
