Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Receives International Patent For Osteoarthritis Treatment With CBD Gel

Shares of Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Inc ZYNE — which specializes in developing transdermal cannabinoid therapies for rare and near-rare neuropsychiatric disorders — were trading in the green Thursday.

The stock gained ground after the International Intellectual Property Organization published its patent on a CBD-based pharmaceutical composition to treat osteoarthritis.

What Happened

The pharmaceutical company conducted a study that showed that cannabidiol (CBD) can be an effective treatment for osteoarthrits patients. The administration of a CBD transdermal gel showed an improvement in a combined pain and function metric. 

The study showed that patients can be administered between 250 mg and 500 mg of CBD, although in some cases, the effective amount could be as low as 125 mg. Using a gel gives the advantage of allowing the CBD to be absorbed through the skin directly in the bloodstream and avoiding first-pass liver metabolism, which allows lower dosages of active phramceutical ingredients.

In addition, transdermal delivery also skips the gastrointestinal tract, reducing the opportunity for adverse events and the potential degradation of CBD by gastric acid into THC. 

Zynerba's lead pipeline candidate is ZYN002, a CBD gel that is also being evaluated for Fragile X syndrome; autism spectrum disorder in pediatriac patients; 22q, also known as as velocardiofacialsyndrome; and a group of ultra-rare epilepsies known as developmental and epileptic encephalopathies. 

Why It's Important

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease that creates loss of cartilage and abnormal bone growth in joints. Symptoms of the disease include stiffness and pain, and it can lead to decreased function or even disability. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that over 30 million adults in the U.S. are affected.

Patenting a method to treat osteoarthritis using CBD will allow Zynerba to tap into a large osteoarthritis market occupied primarily by opioids. 

What's Next

In 2019, Zynerba is expected to provide pivotal data from its study of the ZYN002 candidate in Fragile X syndrome and topline data from a Phase 2 study evaluating the candidate in children and adolescents with developmental and epileptic encephalopathies. It also plans to launch Phase 2 studies in pediatric patients with ASD and with 22q in Australia. 

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