Prozure and Green Clean Extractions to explore cannabis as potential key to ultra-strength probiotics

08 Feb 2021 --- US-based cannabinoid manufacturer Clean Green Extractions has created a joint venture with probiotics producer Prozure to investigate phytocannabinoids’ synergistic benefits with probiotics. 

The duo is aiming to create a supplement capsule for daily use, it says, aimed at improving current nutraceutical standards for gut health, inflammation and immunity.

The announcement follows early signs that cannabis extracts may have far-reaching benefits both in antibiotics and the gut microbiome. 

The “future of nutraceuticals”
The new joint venture between Prozure and Green Clean Extractions is hoping to discover the power of mixing cannabis extract with a probiotic strain long proven to hold benefits for gut health. 

Lactobacillus johnsonii, which has been the subject of published papers examining its effects on gut health, will be combined with cannabinoids. 

Steven Bryant, CEO of Clean Green Extractions, who envisioned the joint venture, believes the “future of cannabis is in nutraceuticals,” and that the duo’s research will result in an advanced formula ready for daily use on an international scale. 

Once a product has been formulated, Prozure will distribute it through its global partners in the F&B industry. 

Click to EnlargeThe new joint venture will seek to produce ultra effective probiotics with the use of cannabis extracts, which are thought to improve absorption.The cannabis catalyst?
Cannabinoid receptors are present all over the body, including immune system cells, blood vessels and vital organs, explains Bryant. 

They also govern many of the systems that affect human functioning. Research suggests that cannabinoids will aid in probiotic absorption and reduce inflammation, he asserts. 

Whether cannabinoids can hold the key to improved probiotic production remains to be seen, however. 

Last year, a study into the effects of cannabinoids on gut inflammation on mice produced mixed findings, leading the study authors to question the efficacy of long term cannabinoid use. 

It found that substantial cannabidiol rich cannabis extract (CRCE)-induced increases in the abundance of A. muciniphila, a bacterial species accepted as a probiotic. This was observed in fecal samples of mice at all doses. 

However, the researchers also observed multiple pro-inflammatory responses, including increased expression of cytokines and chemokines-Il1ß, Cxcl1 and Cxcl2 in the colon tissue. 

Furthermore, dramatic increases in the relative abundance of A. muciniphila significantly decreased the Muc2-a gene expression, which is “intimately associated with gut integrity.”

Probiotics and COVID-19 
The joint venture comes amid a tide of interest in both probiotics and cannabis, with the COVID-19 virus stimulating research into the potential benefits probiotics can have on immune strength. 

Last year, a study found that supplementation of probiotics, omega 3 fatty acids, multivitamins or vitamin D was associated with a lower risk of self-reported SARS-CoV-2 infection. 

Edited by Louis Gore-Langton

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