Cannabis CBD could be used in medical implants

According to a new study published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal by the American Chemical Society, CBD could be used in medical implants.

Polylactic acid or PLA is a popular option for sustainable plastics because it's made from corn and sugarcane instead of fossil fuels. CBD, a non-psychotropic component of cannabis and hemp, has a chemical structure that makes it a good building block for PLA that could replace conventional plastics for medical use.

Researchers Gregory Sotzing, Lakshmi Nair and colleagues have developed a condensation reaction with adipoyl chloride — also used to create nylon — and either CBD or the closely related CBG to make a new bioplastic. They looked at the properties of the polymers.

Neither the polyesters of CBG nor CBD were cytotoxic. According to the study, CBD polyester had an antioxidant activity unlike the conventional PLA. Polymeric CBD had a broad melting temperature range and stretchability. To demonstrate its ability to function as a plastic, the researchers formed it with a mold into a hemp leaf shape. Sotzing said the future goal of his start-up company Polycannabinoid Therapeutics Rx is to engineer anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving bioplastics.