Maridose, a DEA-licensed cannabis manufacturer, has launched its own CRO group to work with researchers developing cannabis-based drugs for preclinical and clinical trials.
The company, which was founded in 2015 and is based in Maine, offers a suite of services to pharmaceutical and biotech firms, academic institutions, authorized cannabis companies and other entities legally permitted to conduct research on schedule 1 drugs.
Maridose's CRO supports all phases of drug development services from initial research to final commercialization, the company said in a Dec. 11 press release.
“As the only DEA-licensed manufacturer providing comprehensive CRO services, the launch of our CRO group marks a significant milestone for the research community,” CEO Lisa Rich-Milan said in the release. “We are dedicated to fostering advancements in cannabis-based medicine and are committed to supporting researchers and organizations striving to make breakthroughs in this rapidly evolving field.”
The U.S. medical marijuana market was estimated to be worth more than $9 billion in 2021 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth of 10% between 2022 and 2030, according to Global Market Insights.
Drugmakers like Novartis have dipped a toe into the space in recent years. Another example is Teva subsidiary Salomon, Levin and Elstein, which in 2019 inked a deal with Canndoc, a publicly traded producer of GMP cannabis products, to distribute to Israeli hospitals, health maintenance organizations and pharmacies.