Cronos Group Inc (NASDAQ:CRON) (TSX: CRON) said on Monday it has entered into a sponsored research agreement to explore the use of cannabinoids and their role in regulating skin health and skin disorders.
The agreement was reached with Technion Research and Development Foundation, which is a subsidiary of the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology. The preclinical studies will be conducted by Technion over a three-year period and will focus on three skin conditions: acne, psoriasis and skin repair.
"We believe that the potential applications of cannabinoids to regulate skin health and treat skin disorders are vast, and we are excited to begin exploring these applications through our partnership with Technion," said Mike Gorenstein, the Cronos Group CEO.
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The endocannabinoid system and the cannabinoids that modulate its activity are believed to have an important role in regulating skin health and skin disorders.
The research will be led by Technion faculty members Dr David Meiri and Dr Yaron Fuchs, two of the world's leading researchers in cannabis and skin stem cell research.
The research will utilize Dr Meiri's cannabis strain database of over 80 cultivars and Cronos Group's strain specific cannabis oils to isolate and investigate the effects of individual and combinations of cannabinoids, potentially including rare cannabinoids, for treating acne, psoriasis and wounds using stem cell-derived organoid cultures developed by Dr Fuchs' laboratory and mouse models.
Cronos Group expects to be able to adapt the individual and combinations of cannabinoids to develop products for each of these three applications and expects to receive an exclusive, worldwide license to market and manufacture such products.
Shares of Cronos Group rose 3.85% to $10.24.
Cronos Group is a globally diversified and vertically integrated cannabis company with a presence across five continents. The company is based in Toronto.
Reporting by Rene Pastor, contactable on rene.pastor@proactiveinvestors.com