Carolyn Baglole

With my expertise in inhalation toxicology and mechanisms of disease pathogenesis, I have developed a new Cannabis Research Program for my laboratory. Cannabis sativa- referred to as cannabis (marijuana) – is one of humanity’s oldest cultivated plants. Cannabis has been used as a therapeutic agent for many conditions including the management of pain. However, scientific evidence on the use of cannabis remains limited in many regards. Therefore, we have developed an interdisciplinary program for biomedical cannabis research to explore the potential of cannabis and cannabinoids in health and disease. For this, we have installed a state-of-the-art inhalation facility. This is important, as the most common way to consume cannabis is still through inhalation (of smoke or vaporized cannabis/cannabinoids). With this equipment, we have optimized a delivery regime for inhaled cannabis and cannabis-derived cannabinoids/novel drugs in real-world scenarios, and ones that mimic human exposures. In addition to evaluating how inhaled cannabis products impact lung and immune health, we will assess the efficacy of these inhaled products in various disease models to better understand the immune-medicated mechanisms involved in the potential therapeutic benefits of cannabis. Along these lines, we will be using these models to test the effectiveness of inhaled, vaporized cannabis and non-psychoactive cannabinoids in alleviating various forms of pain.