Cannabidiol (CBD) Research Program
The Cannabidiol Research Program focuses on the study and development of cannabidiol (CBD), a non-intoxicating cannabinoid, as a potential treatment for opioid use disorder. This line of research is founded on our preclinical animal studies which demonstrated that CBD reduced drug-seeking behavior and normalized neurobiological systems altered by the use of heroin. Subsequently, our initial human studies showed that CBD could reduce cue-induced heroin craving and anxiety in heroin-abstinent individuals. Moreover, CBD had no serious adverse effects suggesting a good safety margin. Our current studies focus on understanding the effects of CBD on the brain as well as conducting clinical trials of CBD formulations as a pharmacological treatment for opioid use disorder.
Ongoing projects
Pharmacokinetic Investigation of BSPG Laboratories (BSPG) Cannabidiol in Healthy Participants (IRB # 21–00607)
The goal of this study is to investigate a new medicinal formulation of CBD and to provide clinical evidence for the development of a non-opioid, non-intoxicating FDA-approved medication to reduce craving and relapse in individuals with opioid use disorder.
*If you are interested in participating, please call 212-585-4671*
Neuroimaging CBD Impacts On Heroin Craving (IRB # 19-01724)
The purpose of this research is to study the effects of CBD on the brain using non-invasive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in individuals with opioid use disorder.
*If you are interested in participating, please call 212-585-4673*
Investigation of the Pharmacokinetic Profile of CBD (IRB # 19-02132)
The goal of this study is to investigate a new medicinal formulation of CBD and to provide clinical evidence for the development of a non-opioid, non-intoxicating FDA-approved medication to reduce craving and relapse in individuals with opioid use disorder.
*If you are interested in participating, please call 212-585-4662*
Literature/ Publications/ Presentations
Hurd, Y. L., S. Spriggs, J. Alishayev, G. Winkel, K. Gurgov, C. Kudrich, A. M. Oprescu and E. Salsitz (2019). Cannabidiol for the Reduction of Cue-Induced Craving and Anxiety in Drug-Abstinent Individuals With Heroin Use Disorder: A Double-Blind Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial. Am J Psychiatry: appiajp201918101191.
Hurd YL. Cannabidiol: Swinging the Marijuana Pendulum From “Weed” to Medication to Treat the Opioid Epidemic, Trends in Neuroscience, 40(3):124-127, 2017.
Hurd YL, Yoon M, Manini AF, Hernandez S, Olmedo R, Ostman M, Jutras-Aswad D. Early Phase in the Development of Cannabidiol as a Treatment for Addiction: Opioid Relapse Takes Initial Center Stage. Neurotherapeutics, Oct;12(4):807-15, 2015. PMCID: PMC4604178.
AF Manini, G Yiannoulos, MM Bergamaschi, S Hernandez, R Olmedo, AJ Barnes, G Winkel, R Sinha, D Jutras-Aswad, MA Huestis and YL Hurd. Safety and pharmacokinetics of oral cannabidiol when administered concomitantly with intravenous fentanyl in humans. Journal of Addiction Medicine, 9(3):204-10. 2015. PMCID: PMC4449284.
Ren, Y., Whittard, Higuera-Matas, A., Morris, CV, Hurd YL. Cannabidiol, a nonpsychotropic component of cannabis, inhibits cue-induced heroin-seeking and normalizes discrete mesolimbic neuronal disturbances. Journal of Neuroscience, 29:14764-9, 2009.
Group Members
- Yasmin Hurd, PhD, Director, Addiction Institute of Mount Sinai
- Keren Bachi, PhD, Assistant Professor
- Edwin Salsitz, MD, Study Physician
- Christopher Kudrich, DHSc, PA-C, Physician Assistant
- Anna Oprescu, MPH, Program Manager
- Samantha Huang, BS, Clinical Research Coordinator
- Vyoma Sahani, BS, Clinical Research Coordinator
- Demarko Flanagan, BS, Clinical Research Coordinator
- Anna Pandolfi, BS, Clinical Research Coordinator