Today's Top Marijuana Stock News: NanoSphere's Patent, MariMed Acquires iRollie, Aurora Goes To Malta

Tuesday ended on a high note for North American cannabis companies.

A Patent

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office awarded NanoSphere Health Sciences Inc NSHSF a patent for its phospholipid nanoparticle technology.

The cannabinoid delivery platform, which carries the active molecules into systemic circulation, garnered the firm’s second patent this year and is currently available in NanoSphere products sold in Colorado.

An Expansion

Aurora Cannabis Inc ACBFF received conditional approval from Malta Enterprise to establish a seed-to-pharma cannabis operation.

The Letter of Intent authorizes construction of a hybrid cultivation, manufacturing and distribution plant, and it is the first cultivation LOI granted by Maltese authorities.

“Aurora already was the first company to export medical cannabis to both Italy and Malta, and now are the first to receive approval for the production, processing, and distribution of cannabis in the country,” Neil Belot, Aurora’s chief global business development officer, said in a statement. “Having an EU GMP compliant facility in Malta will position us well to serve multiple international markets, including Southern Europe and beyond.”

Malta Industrial Parks Ltd. will allocate land for Aurora’s development, and the project will be executed by Aurora Malta, a new Aurora subsidiary formed in partnership with pharmaceutical wholesaler Cherubino Ltd.

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A Partnership

GTEC Holdings Ltd GTEC inked an LOI with TheraProducts to create a joint venture to develop and commercialize cannabis-based beverages and edibles.

GTEC will contribute its OLEO microencapsulation technology to convert cannabis oils to soluble powder, and TheraProducts will supply equipment and intellectual property. The parties aim to finalize a definitive agreement on or before Sept. 1.

A Trial

Harvest One Cannabis Inc HRVOF announced positive results for a Phase 2 clinical study of subsidiary Satipharm’s cannabidiol capsules as an adjunctive treatment.

PhytoTech Therapeutics, which is pending sale to Harvest One, conducted the trial and found an 82-percent median reduction in monthly seizures for treatment-resistant children over a 12-week period. About 56 percent of patients reported at least 50-percent reduction in total seizures during the study.

“This is a step forward for Harvest One’s pharma and nutraceutical strategy,” Harvest One CEO Grant Froese said in a press release.

An Acquisition

MariMed Inc/SH SH MRMD acquired iRollie LLC, an e-commerce website for cannabis accessories, for $600,000 worth of MariMed stock.

“iRollie enables an in-house ability to develop, improve and effectively market new and existing brands, as well as add a fast-growing revenue stream of proprietary product offerings to MariMed’s financials,” MariMed COO Tim Shaw said in a press release.

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