Canna Research ►
Missouri Cannabis Research Licenses Under the Microscope
Could cannabis research in Missouri be on the horizon ?
by April Hatch , MSN , RN , contributing writer
In our fifth anniversary , June 2024 , issue , I gave an update on the state ’ s progress in licensing two cannabis research facilities . Since then , the state has issued another product recall , awarded 57 microbusiness licenses , and transferred $ 10 million in funds to agencies outlined in Amendment XIV , which includes the Missouri Veteran ’ s Commission . Missouri continues to actively seek the public ’ s input on how to award and regulate the two cannabis research licenses we voted for back in 2022 and , in August , held an open session . Molly Kopczynski , a cannabis advocate and employee relations specialist at Greenlight Dispensaries , attended via Zoom .
At the meeting , the state discussed delays in awarding these microbusiness licenses due to a backlog of packaging approval requests and listened to testimony from a diversity of professionals , including researchers , doctors , and advocates like Kopcznski .
Kopczynski has done her research and understands it can take years for a state to roll out a cannabis program . Citing in our interview , West Virginia , which passed its medical program in 2017 , didn ’ t see a dispensary open until 2021 and still does not allow the sale of edibles . In my experience , primarily working with seniors who suffer from chronic pain , edibles are their first choice and account for nearly 50 % of what is stocked on dispensary shelves . Currently , Kopczynski is putting together a training program for employees about the science of cannabis , and that science has not been easy to get .
Lucas Nelson and Duncan Mackie of Bud & Mary ’ s , a licensed operator in Missouri and three other states , understand the challenges of researching cannabis more than most . A family-owned company , whose long-term vision includes priorities like studying the effects of cannabinoid-based products on sleep and Alzheimer ’ s disease , has been working with the DEA and Colorado ’ s Institute of Cannabis
18 October 2024
Research to obtain data from human trials on the effects of cannabis . Mackie has a background in academics and drug discovery and development , so I obviously geeked out hearing him discuss neuroinflammation and the burden placed on society by chronic diseases . As always , I think many chronic diseases are greatly preventable by actions taken by individuals and the agencies designed to protect them .
With researching cannabis in Missouri on the horizon and studies currently being conducted on psychedelics , such as MDMA and psilocybin for the treatment of PTSD , I decided to take a position as a clinical research nurse , where I am learning what it takes to see a drug progress from early-stage development to being approved by the FDA . Some of you may be aware of how challenging it has been to research cannabis in the U . S ., but for others , let ’ s look at what something like this might take to achieve .
First , before any claim can be made about a substance , it takes years of research and , often , several hundred million dollars , limiting the science we have available because only big pharmaceutical companies have that kind of bankroll . Usually starting in the lab with in-vitro ( basically test tubes ) and then proceeding to in-vivo , when research is conducted on a living organism . While examining the effects on a living organism and collecting safety data , a large amount , up to over 1,000 times what would be given to a human , is given to mice , rats , or rabbits .
Once proven that it doesn ’ t have carcinogenic effects or kill the mice , we advance to human trials . Here , a wide range of validity among different study methods exists . Ranging from retrospective and observational studies , commonly cited in cannabis , to the goldstandard , double-blind , randomized-controlled trials that must be conducted to prove some efficacy ( yes , some ). It only has to be effective 30 % of the time before the FDA can approve it .
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