Acute Toxicity and Pharmacokinetic Profile of an EU-GMP-Certified Cannabis sativa L. in Rodents

The conundrum of Cannabis sativa's applications for therapeutical purposes is set apart by the hundreds of known and commercially available strains, the social, cultural and historical context, and the legalization of its use for medical purposes in various jurisdictions around the globe. In an era where targeted therapies are continuously being developed and have become the norm, it is imperative to conduct standardized, controlled studies on strains currently cultivated under Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) certification, a standard that guarantees the quality requirements for modern medical and therapeutic use. Thus, the aim of our study is to evaluate the acute toxicity of a 15.6% THC: <1% CBD, EU-GMP certified, Cannabis sativa L. in rodents, following the OECD acute oral toxicity guidelines, and to provide an overview of its pharmacokinetic profile. Groups of healthy female Sprague-Dawley rats were treated orally with a stepwise incremental dose, each step using three animals. The absence or presence of plant-induced mortality in rats dosed at one step determined the next step. For the EU GMP-certified Cannabis sativa L. investigated, we determined an oral LD50 value of over 5000 mg/kg in rats and a human equivalent oral dose of ≈806.45 mg/kg. Additionally, no significant clinical signs of toxicity or gross pathological findings were observed. According to our data, the toxicology, safety and pharmacokinetic profile of the tested EU-GMP-certified Cannabis sativa L. support further investigations through efficacy and chronic toxicity studies in preparation for potential future clinical applications and especially for the treatment of chronic pain.

Interactions between the oxidative and nitrosative stress in nociceptive processing in rat

During the last years, special emphasis was directed towards the relation between the molecular and cellular alterations produced by free oxygen radicals and the normal and pathologic implications of nitric oxide. Moreover, lately it is believed that a true radical cascade might exist between the reactive species of oxygen and nitrogen during stress of various causes. In this way, their succession would produce a temporal prolongation of the complex cellular alterations produced by stressing aggressions. In the present paper, we were interested in presented some selective aspects regarding the interactions between oxidative and nitrosative stress in the modulation of the nociceptive behavior in rats. We report here a significant correlation between the results of the hot-plate latency time and the values of some oxidative and nitrosative stress markers.

Hardness of oxide films formed as a result of aluminium anode oxidation processes

Factors that influence the anode oxidation processes of aluminium and its alloys are discussed. The main parameters involved in such processes have been selected and subjected to measurement under controlled experimental conditions. The effects of the variation of the chemical, electrical and thermal parameters of the aluminium anode oxidation process on the hardness level of the resulting oxide layer have been studied. In order to quantify the relationships that govern the kinetics of the anode oxidation process, these data were subjected to analysis employing a central compositional rotatory programming matrix. Parameters employed were electrolyte concentration, temperature, current density and immersion time of the product in the electrolyte to achieve a desired oxide layer. The hardness of the resulting oxide layers is discussed.