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Innovative Medicines & Omics A perspective on medicinal cannabis delivery systems

in various pathologies. Although the aforementioned used intramucosal route of administration, there are other
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formulations partially counteract the difficulties associated more effective administration modes such as intranasal,
with oral administration of cannabinoids, there are other oral transmucosal, and rectal routes. In this context, a
routes of administration that could increase efficacy multitude of cannabis products have been developed
through more direct uptake and transport of the drug into to be administered by this route, such as sublingual
the bloodstream, also avoiding hepatic metabolism. These disintegrating thin films, sprays, orally disintegrating
alternative administration routes are described in sections tablets, buccal mucoadhesive tablets, films and patches,
2.2, 2.3, and 2.4. chewing gum, and lozenges. These formulations have
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been shown to increase the bioavailability of cannabinoids,
2.2. Transdermal administration but have not been developed with the ability to release
Dermal formulations can be transdermal (for systemic cannabinoids at sites of interest such as tumors or disease
effects) and topical (for localized effects on the skin). sites, and also show various adverse effects. In this context,
Transdermal drug administration has the advantage of there is currently a growing interest in the development
avoiding the first-pass metabolism effect. In addition, of nano-formulations of cannabis compounds for cancer
a sustained release is achieved over time, preventing therapy, pain management, and treatments for various
the adverse effects of high drug concentrations. Topical other pathologies.
application suits localized symptoms associated with
peripheral neuropathic pain, dermatological disorders, 3. Trends, perspectives, and conclusion
and arthritis. However, this administration route has The usefulness and efficacy of a drug delivery system
several disadvantages such as limited skin penetration of depend on several factors such as solubility, half-life,
drugs and local irritation. Particularly, cannabis is highly metabolism, distribution, and ease of use. In this regard,
lipophilic, a property that hampers its release through the many novel proposals have been developed in recent years
skin. In this sense, numerous researchers have developed to improve the performance of the above-mentioned
synthetic cannabinoid prodrugs to obtain more skin- systems. Particularly, nanotechnology is an example of a
permeable products and demonstrated the efficiency of novel proposal for medicinal cannabis delivery systems.
this strategy. 15,16 Nanoparticles have been extensively studied in controlled
release systems. Their main attributes are: (i) improved
2.3. Pulmonary administration
encapsulation efficiency and increased drug solubility; (ii)
Since ancient times, cannabis has been consumed in the presence of surface functional groups that improve stability
form of cigarettes, both for recreational and therapeutic and internalization; (iii) increased bioavailability, improved
purposes. Its compounds have very high bioavailability, pharmacokinetics, and minimal clearance from the body;
reaching a maximum concentration in plasma after and (iv) controlled drug release properties. Examples of
approximately 7.5 min. In addition, this concentration nanoparticle-based delivery systems for cannabinoids are
can remain constant for about 4 h with rapid distribution nano-emulsions, dendrimers, micelles, liposomes, and
to the central nervous system. Unfortunately, this route biodegradable polymers. As mentioned above, the delivery
of administration has the problem of being able to cause of cannabinoids in lipids has several advantages which,
conditions such as bronchitis and chronic cough associated in combination with nanotechnology, make it highly
with the harmful products generated during smoking. attractive in the design of delivery systems. In this context,
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One method that can mitigate these adverse effects is the systems based on nanomicelles, nanoemulsions, and
use of vaporization, which involves heating cannabis to the nanostructured lipid carriers have been proposed. Another
temperature at which cannabinoids are vaporized, below alternative is the formation of self-emulsifying delivery
the combustion temperature. This avoids the formation systems, which can improve the bioavailability, dissolution,
of harmful compounds associated with the combustion and stability of cannabinoids. These systems consist of
process. 17 mixtures of solvents, surfactants, and oils with the ability to
spontaneously disintegrate upon contact with an aqueous
2.4. Transmucosal administration phase, such as the fluids present in the gastrointestinal

Through transmucosal administration, drugs can be rapidly tract. On the other hand, polymer-based drug delivery
absorbed into the bloodstream due to the vascularity of the systems have also been proposed to modulate the release
oral mucosa. This route of administration is non-invasive of cannabis compounds. In particular, poly(lactic-co-
and has the advantage of being able to bypass the first pass glycolic acid) has been widely studied for encapsulating
through the liver. In this way, pre-systemic metabolism is cannabis-based compounds due to its biocompatible and
avoided. Although the oral route is the most commonly biodegradable properties. The use of nanotechnology
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Volume 2 Issue 1 (2025) 52 doi: 10.36922/imo.4448