Mahmoud A Elsohly

University of Mississippi | UM · National Center for Natural Products Research

Importance: Products containing cannabinoids such as cannabidiol (CBD) have proliferated since 2018, when the Agriculture Improvement Act removed hemp (ie, cannabis containing <0.3% Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol [THC]) from the US controlled substances list. Topical cannabinoid products can be purchased nationwide at retail stores and over the internet,...

Primaquine (PQ) is a racemic drug used in treatment of malaria for six decades. Recent studies suggest that the two enantiomers of PQ are differentially metabolized in animals, and this results in different pharmacological and toxicological profiles. The current study characterizes the pharmacokinetic (PK) properties, metabolism and tolerability of...

Background: Phytocannabinoids naturally occur in the cannabis plant (Cannabis sativa), and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) predominate. There is a need for rapid inexpensive methods to quantify total THC (for statutory definition) and THC-CBD ratio (for classification into three chemotypes). This study explores the capabilities...

Background and Purpose: This study sought to determine whether cannabidiol (CBD) or a CBD derivative, CBD monovalinate monohemisuccinate (CBD-val-HS), could attenuate the development of oxycodone reward while retaining its analgesic effects. Experimental Approach: To determine the effect on oxycodone reward, animals were enrolled in the conditioned...

Eleven new quinoxaline derivatives were designed and synthesized as modified VEGFR-2 inhibitors of our previous work. The synthesized compounds were tested against three human cancer cell lines (HepG-2, MCF-7 and HCT-116). Compounds11g,11eand11cwere the most potent members against the tested cells. Compound11g(IC50= 4.50, 2.40, and 5.90 μM) was the...

VEGF/VEGFR2 pathway is the crucial therapeutic target in the treatment of cancer. So that, a new series of quinoxaline-2(1H)-one derivatives were designed and synthesized. The synthesized compounds were tested against three human cancer cell lines (HepG-2, MCF-7 and HCT-116) aiming to evaluate its anti-proliferative activities. Doxorubicin as a uni...

Cannabis sativa is one of the oldest medicinal plants in the world. It was introduced into western medicine during the early 19th century. It contains a complex mixture of secondary metabolites, including cannabinoids and non-cannabinoid-type constituents. More than 500 compounds have been reported from C. sativa, of which 125 cannabinoids have bee...

Microbial biotransformation of cannabidiol was assessed using 31 different microorganisms. Only Mucor ramannianus (ATCC 9628), Beauveria bassiana (ATCC 7195), and Absidia glauca (ATCC 22 752) were able to metabolize cannabidiol. M. ramannianus (ATCC 9628) yielded five metabolites, namely, 7,4″β-dihydroxycannabidiol (1: ), 6β,4″β-dihydroxycannabidio...

Fifty four domestically produced cannabis samples obtained from different USA states were quantitatively assayed by GC–FID to detect 22 active components: 15 terpenoids and 7 cannabinoids. The profiles of the selected compounds were used as inputs for samples grouping to their geographical origins and for building a geographical prediction model us...

Cannabidiol, a non-intoxicating phytocannabinoid, has potential therapeutic effects over a broad range of disorders. Recently, there has been increased interest in CBD, as several studies showed promising anticonvulsant efficacy with few side effects. In 2018, a CBD-based oral solution, Epidiolex®, was approved by the FDA to treat two severe forms...

This report examines the concentration of seven major cannabinoids including Δ⁹-THC and CBD in illicit herbal cannabis products seized by the Drug enforcement Administration (DEA) over the last ten years in the USA. Cannabis Samples received from DEA reginal laboratories are analyzed by a validated GC/FID method and the results given in the report....

The antimalarial drug primaquine (PQ) causes methemoglobinemia and hemolysis in individuals with a genetic deficiency of glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by redox cycling of the metabolite primaquine-5,6-orthoquinone (POQ) in erythrocytes has been attributed to be responsible for the toxicity of PQ. Carboxy...

In this research, cannabis varieties represent 23 USA States were assayed by GC-FID to generate their complex chemical profiles informative for plants clustering. Results showed that 45 cannabinoids and terpenoids were quantified in all plant samples, where 8 cannabinoids and 18 terpenoids were identified. Among organics, Δ ⁹ -THC, CBN (cannabinoid...

Sixteen novel quinazoline-based derivatives were designed and synthesized via modification of the VEGFR-2 reported inhibitor 7 in order to increase the binding affinity of the designed compounds to the receptor active site. The designed compounds were evaluated for their VEGFR-2 inhibitory effects. Inhibiting VEGFR-2 has been set up as a therapeuti...

The use of Δ 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and Δ 9-tetrahydrocannabinol-valine-hemisuccinate (THC-VHS; NB1111) has recently been investigated in the management of intraocular pressure (IOP). The current study was undertaken to develop an optimized THC-VHS-loaded nanoemulsion formulation (NE; THC-VHS-NE) that could improve the drug load and duration...

The use of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-valine-hemisuccinate (THC-VHS; NB1111) has recently been investigated in the management of intraocular pressure (IOP). The current study was undertaken to develop an optimized THC-VHS-loaded nanoemulsion formulation (NE; THC-VHS-NE) that could improve the drug load and duration of...

Design, synthesis, and anti-proliferative evaluation of new quinazolin-4(3H)-ones as potential VEGFR-2 inhibitors, Abstract Inhibiting VEGFR-2 has been set up as a therapeutic strategy for treatment of cancer. Thus, nineteen new quinazoline-4(3H)-one derivatives were designed and synthesized. Preliminary cytotoxicity studies of the synthesized comp...

PREMISE: How genetic variation within a species affects phytochemical composition is a fundamental question in botany. The ratio of two specialized metabolites in Cannabis sativa, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), can be grouped into three main classes (THC-type, CBD-type, and intermediate type). We tested a genetic model associatin...

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a biologically active, non-psychotropic component of Cannabis sativa whose popularity has grown exponentially in recent years. Besides a wealth of potential health benefits, ingestion of CBD poses risks for a number of side effects, of which hepatotoxicity and CBD/herb-drug interactions are of particular concern. Here, we inves...

Hemp products are readily available and are aggressively marketed for their health and medicinal benefits. Most consumers of these products are interested because of cannabidiol (CBD), which has taken the natural products industry by storm. The CBD and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) concentrations in these products are often absent, and even wher...

Lotus corniculatus L. (Fabaceae) is widely grown in Egypt. It has a great history of folkloric medicinal uses. All fractions of aerial parts of L. corniculatus L. showed significant antioxidant and immunostimulant activities and could strongly induce lymphoproliferation. However, the light petrol fraction had antifungal activity against C. neoforma...

Herein we report the design and synthesis of a new series of phthalazine derivatives as Topo II inhibitors and DNA intercalators. The synthesized compounds were in vitro evaluated for their cytotoxic activities against HepG-2, MCF-7 and HCT-116 cell lines. Additionally, Topo II inhibitory activity and DNA intercalating affinity were investigated fo...

In this study, an ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC)/photodiode array method was developed for the simultaneous determination of trigonellan glucoside (1), isotrigonellan (2), and methoxy-isotrigonellan (3) in Trigonella stellata extract using an external standard method. The extract was prepared using a standardized method by maceratio...

Cannabis has been reported to contain over 560 different compounds, out of which 120 are cannabinoids. Among the cannabinoids, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol are the two major compounds with very different pharmacological profile and a tremendous therapeutic potential. However, there are many challenges in bringing cannabis from grow-farms...

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Artemisinin derivatives, including the dihydroartemisinin (DHA) monomers, are widely used as clinical agents for the treatment of malaria. Numerous studies demonstrate that these molecules also display antineoplastic activity with minimal toxicity. Of interest, dimeric...

The proliferation in the last few years of cannabidiol (CBD)-containing products in the U.S. markets has been greatly accelerated by changes in the regulatory environment, and by perceptions of their health benefits and presumed safety. The result has been aggressive marketing of many types of products, some of dubious quality, making or implying d...

Objectives Cannabidiol (CBD) is the major non-psychotropic phytocannabinoid present in Cannabis sativa. In 2018, Congress designated select C. sativa cultivars as “hemp” removing them from the DEA's list of controlled substances. As a result, CBD-containing hemp extracts and other CBD products are now widely available and heavily marketed, yet thei...

Products containing cannabidiol (CBD) are now available throughout the United States, but their quality is oftentimes questionable. The CBD and Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content of 25 commercially available hemp oil products, obtained throughout the state of Mississippi, was determined via gas chromatography/flame ionization detection (GC/FID)....

Cannabidiol (CBD) is the major non-psychotropic phytocannabinoid present in Cannabis sativa. In 2018, Congress designated certain C. sativa plant material as “hemp,” thus removing it from the DEA’s list of controlled substances. As a result, CBD-containing hemp extracts and other CBD products are now widely available and heavily marketed, yet their...

The volatile oils of fresh and air-dried buds of 3 different varieties of Cannabis, namely, high cannabidiol (CBD) chemotype, intermediate CBD/tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) chemotype, and high THC chemotype were prepared by hydrodistillation. Gas chromatography analysis of the volatile oils resulted in the identification of 71 compounds, of which 33 w...

A method has been developed to screen cannabis extracts for more than 1,000 pesticides and environmental pollutants using a gas chromatograph coupled to a high-resolution accurate mass quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer (GC/Q-TOF). An extraction procedure was developed using acetonitrile with solid phase extraction cleanup. Before analysis...

Inhibiting VEGFR-2 has been set up as a therapeutic strategy for treatment of cancer. Accordingly, new quinazoline-based derivatives having the structural features of VEGFR-2 inhibitors were designed and synthesized. Anti-proliferative activities were evaluated against three human cancer cell lines (HepG-2, MCF-7 and HCT-116) using MTT assay method...

Different USA-origin cannabis samples were analyzed by GC-FID to quantify all possible cannabinoids and terpenoids prior to their clustering. Chromatographic analysis confirmed the presence of seven cannabinoids and sixteen terpenoids with variable levels. Among tested cannabinoids, Δ⁹-Tetrahydrocannabinol Δ⁹-THC and cannabinol CBN were available i...

In the original publication, table 2 contained data that should not have been included in table 2 and also was not discussed in the body of the manuscript.

Cannabis has been used as medicine since ancient times in different forms. With over 500 known constituents, of which cannabinoids are the most important class (120 known). Δ⁹-Tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ⁹-THC) and Cannabidiol (CBD) are the two major natural cannabinoids having very different pharmacological profiles with tremendous therapeutic potentia...

The chemical investigation of the Red Sea sponge Negombata sp. led to isolation and structure elucidation of five new ceramides N ((2S,3R,4E,8E)-1,3-dihydroxyhexacosa-4,8-dien-2-yl)pentadecanamide (1), N-((2S,3R,E)-1,3-dihydroxynonadec-4-en-2-yl)stearamide (2), N-[(2S,3R,E)-1,3 dihydroxyhexacos-4-en-2-yl]palmitamide (3), N-((2S,3R)-1,3-dihydroxydod...

Purpose: Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol-valine-hemisuccinate, a hydrophilic prodrug of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol, synthesized with the aim of improving the ocular bioavailability of the parent molecule, was investigated in a lipid-based nanoparticle dosage form for ocular delivery. Methods: Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-valine...

Background: Cryopreservation is the only method allowing the safe and cost-effective long-term conservation of important germplasm. Recent use of the cryo-plate system has proven beneficial in further simplifying the cryopreservation protocols. Objective: Developing an efficient protocol for the cryopreservation of axillary buds of Cannabis sati...

In continuation of our previous work on the design and synthesis of topoisomerase II (Topo II) inhibitors and DNA intercalators, a new series of quinoxaline derivatives were designed and synthesized. The synthesized compounds were evaluated for their cytotoxic activities against a panel of three cancer cell lines (Hep G-2, Hep-2, and Caco-2). Compo...

Poison Ivy

The goal of this study was to investigate the potential for a cannabidiol-rich cannabis extract (CRCE) to interact with the most common over-the-counter drug and the major known cause of drug-induced liver injury–acetaminophen (APAP)–in aged female CD-1 mice. Gavaging mice with 116 mg/kg of cannabidiol (CBD) [mouse equivalent dose (MED) of 10 mg/kg...

The goal of this study was to investigate Cannabidiol (CBD) hepatotoxicity in 8-week-old male B6C3F1 mice. Animals were gavaged with either 0, 246, 738, or 2460 mg/kg of CBD (acute toxicity, 24 h) or with daily doses of 0, 61.5, 184.5, or 615 mg/kg for 10 days (sub-acute toxicity). These doses were the allometrically scaled mouse equivalent doses (...

Purpose: Cannabidiol (CBD), active component of plant Cannabis sativa, has anti-inflammatory properties that could potentially help treat diabetic retinopathy-induced pain and inflammation. However, CBD is a lipophilic molecule making its topical delivery to back of the eye challenging. This study aims at improving ocular penetration of CBD by mean...

Cannabis sativa L. (marijuana or hemp) is recognized worldwide for its psychoactive properties as well as for fiber production. This study focused on the evaluation of 3 droplet vitrification protocols for long-term conservation of shoot tips in liquid nitrogen (LN). Shoot tips (∼0.5 mm) were excised from 3- to 4-week-old in vitro-grown shoots of 3...

Poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac are the most common causes of clinically diagnosed allergic contact dermatitis in North America. Approximately 50% to 75% of the US adult population is clinically sensitive to poison ivy, oak, and sumac. We reviewed the botany and history of these plants; urushiol chemistry and pathophysiology, clinical feat...

Introduction:Cannabis sativa has been used for centuries in treating pain. However, the analgesic role of many of its constituents including terpenes is unknown. This research examined the contributions of terpenes (volatile oil) and cannabinoids in cannabis-mediated analgesia in rats. Methods: Animals received intraperitoneal administration of eit...

Through the potency monitoring program at the University of Mississippi supported by National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a total of 18108 samples of cannabis preparations have been analyzed over the last decade, using a validated GC/FID method. The samples are classified as sinsemilla, marijuana, ditchweed, hashish, and hash oil (now referred...

Terpenes are the major components of the essential oils present in various Cannabis sativa L. varieties. These compounds are responsible for the distinctive aromas and flavors. Besides the quantification of the cannabinoids, determination of the terpenes in C. sativa strains could be of importance for the plant selection process. At the University...

The chemical study of Cannabis sativa roots led to the isolation and identification of 10 compounds. Their chemical structures were unambiguously established on the basis of 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry as friedelan-3-one (1), epifriedelanol (2), β-sitosterol (3), ergost-5-en-3-ol (4), methyl hexadecanoate (5), pentadecanoic aci...

Background: Primaquine (PQ), an 8-aminoquinoline, is the only drug approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration for radical cure and prevention of relapse in Plasmodium vivax infections. Knowledge of the metabolism of PQ is critical for understanding the therapeutic efficacy and hemolytic toxicity of this drug. Recent in vitro studie...

A method was developed for the analysis of stimulant drugs, opiates, synthetic opiates, PCP, and benzodiazepines in wastewater samples using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS). A total of 33 compounds (stimulant-type drugs and metabolites of opiates, synthetic opiates, PCP, and benzodiazepines) were analyzed. The...

Objective: This research examined whether a cannabidiol (CBD)-opioid pharmacotherapy could attenuate cisplatin-induced tactile allodynia. Methods: Mice (C57BL/6) were given 6 doses of 2.3 mg/kg cisplatin intraperitoneally (IP) on alternating days to induce tactile allodynia as quantified using an electric von Frey (eVF). Test groups in Experimen...

New series of [1,2,4]triazolo [4,3-a]quinoxaline and bis([1,2,4]triazolo)[4,3-a:3',4'-c]quinoxaline derivatives have been designed, synthesized and biologically evaluated for their cytotoxic activities against three tumor cell lines (HePG-2, Hep-2 and Caco-2). Compounds 16e, 21, 25a and 25b exhibited the highest activities against the examined cell...

The objectives of this study were: (1) to assess the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of ascending doses of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-hemisuccinate (THC-HS) after rectal administration as suppositories in male volunteers; and (2) to compare the pharmacokinetics of oral administration of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) with an equivalent am...

Accumulating evidence suggests that the endocannabinoid system is a promising target for the treatment of a variety of health conditions. Two paths of cannabinoid drug development have emerged. One approach is focused on developing medications that are directly derived from the cannabis plant. The other utilizes a single molecule approach whereby i...

Background: Poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac are the most common causes of allergic contact dermatitis in North America. Although extensive efforts have been made to develop therapies that prevent and treat allergic contact dermatitis to these plants, there lacks an entirely effective method, besides complete avoidance. Efforts to develop...

The in vitro antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic activities of an alcoholic extract of Trigonella stellata were evaluated in terms of the activation of PPARα and PPARγ in human hepatoma (HepG2) cells. The extract was investigated phytochemically, aiming at the isolation of the most active compounds to be used as a platform for drug discovery. Three...

A liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry single-laboratory validation was performed for the detection and quantification of the 10 major cannabinoids of cannabis, namely, (−)-trans-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol, cannabidiol, cannabigerol, cannabichromene, tetrahydrocannabivarian, cannabinol, (−)-trans-Δ8-tetrahydrocannabinol, cannabidiolic acid,...

In recent years, discovery of the cannabinoid receptors in the ocular tissues has opened up the possible utility of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other cannabinoids in the management of several ocular diseases and conditions. The biopharmaceutical characteristics of THC, however, do not favor transmembrane diffusion. Additional physiological barri...