Department of Life Sciences awarded £600,000 grant with Oxford Cannabinoid Technology
- Thursday, November 1, 2018
Professor Fulvio D’Acquisto from the Department of Life Sciences is leading a £600,000 project in partnership with Oxford Cannabinoid Technology and Oxford University to investigate treatment for people living with chronic inflammation and autoimmune disorders.
According to a study published in 2010, in The Journal of Rheumatology Supplement, chronic Inflammation and autoimmune immune disorders affect between 5% and 7% of western Society. It also affects more than 15% of the population worldwide. US patients with chronic inflammatory disorders spend around $38,000 per year for the management of their conditions. In the UK, it has been estimated that chronic inflammatory conditiona such as Rheumatoid Arthritis cost more that £600 million per year with an additional cost to the economy of sick leave and work-related disability of around £1.8 billion a year.
Currently, there are not any effective treatments for these conditions. This research project aims to develop new treatments for acute and chronic pain, cancer, and inflammatory disease. The project will involve using newly discovered cannabinoid molecules to find alternative ways for delivering effective treatment for patients.
Professor D’Acquisto, said: “Cannabinoids could offer a novel treatment of these conditions given their unique mechanisms of action and selective signalling pathways. We are extremely excited to partner with OCT and other research groups in Oxford to unravel the therapeutic potential of cannabinoid molecules.”
The project is funded by Kingsley Capital Partners through its new portfolio company Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies (OCT) and a series of research with Oxford University and the University of Roehampton.
To find out more about the project, please click here.
The Department of Life Sciences offers an outstanding undergraduate degree in Biomedical Science and a postgraduate degree in Cell Biomedicine (MRES).