Washington State University Forms Center For Supervising A Wide-Range Of Cannabis-Related Trials

The Washington State University Faculty Senate and Board of Regents have formed a Center for Cannabis Policy, Research and Outreach (CCRPO) with the idea of overseeing the schools’ comprehensive cannabis research, reported Hemp Today.

“The center status recognizes our researchers’ outstanding, multi-disciplinary scholarship on cannabis. It also brings together under one center work on everything from research focused on the impact of cannabis on development to scholarship on cannabis and public safety, as well as our growing hemp research,” said Michael McDonell, CCPRO Director.

WSU began cannabis research back in 2011, prior to Washington becoming the first state, along with Colorado, to legalize adult-use cannabis in 2012. Now, the university is poised to take its research to the next level as it will employ around 100 scientists to supervise many ongoing cannabis-related studies.

One of them is being led by Professor David Gang, whose WSU research team is in its second year of hemp planting trials. 

The University also collaborated with researchers from Oregon and California who are examining hemp germplasm for CBD and industrial use, analyzing plant chemistry and searching for varieties that would blossom in specific parts of the state. 

Over the last six years, WSU has undertaken some 50 projects including studies of behavioral and biological predictors of cannabis abuse using a novel animal model of cannabis vapor administration. This research was recently granted $400,000 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Photo by Lucas Vasques on Unsplash