Improving Bioavailability: Lexaria Tackles the Absorption Problem

SEATTLE, WA / ACCESSWIRE / June 16, 2015 / Lexaria Corporation (OTCQB: LXRP), a
food sciences company focused on the delivery of cannabinoid compounds, made
news this week when they filed a U.S. utility patent application and an International
patent application regarding their lipid infusion technology. The company
theorizes that by infusing THC and Cannabidoil’s (also known as CBD’s) into
lipids (fats and fatty acids) they will be absorbed into the body at a greater
rate then if they are consumed on their own. As is, smoking marijuana delivers the highest bioavailability of THC at an
average
rate of 30%, while orally consuming marijuana only
delivers THC at an average bioavailability rate of 5%.

According to the
National Institutes of Health, “cannabidiol (CBD),
has great potential for the treatment of chronic and ‘breakthrough’ pain that
may occur in certain conditions like cancer. To fulfill this goal, suitable
noninvasive drug delivery systems need to be developed for CBD.” It is this gap in suitable delivery systems
that Lexaria has targeted with their recently filed patent applications.

The company has filed
for US and international patent protection in up to 148 countries, for their
unique method of delivery of each of THC; CBD; Nicotine; NSAIDs; and certain
Vitamins.

Interview With Chris Bunka, CEO of Lexaria Corp.

In the below interview, Cannabis
Financial Network recently took the time to sit down with CEO of Lexaria, Chris
Bunka. In the interview Mr. Bunka
discusses the recent company news, and provides further insight into the
potential applications of their technology.

CannabisFN Executive Interview | Chris Bunka, CEO of Lexaria Corp. from TDM Financial on Vimeo.

Is Nicotine the Problem or is the Delivery Mechanism the Problem?

After reviewing the initial results
from their tests done on THC and CBD’s, Lexaria was astute enough to realize
that their technology could be applied to a wide range of other fat-soluble
molecules.

Part of the recent
company PR was explaining that this technology is applicable to nicotine,
NSAID’s, and fat-soluble vitamins; combined these 3 industries total over $1
trillion a year in recurring revenue.

Nicotine is particularly
interesting as the rise of chewing gums, nicotine patches, and lozenges have
genuinely helped millions of people stop smoking tobacco, yet nicotine itself
is the main ingredient that these products use. Tobacco companies such as Philip Morris International (NYSE: PM) and Reynolds
American, Inc. (NYSE: RAI) have been non-existent in this market as they are
clearly in the camp of defending smokers and the industry of growing and
manufacturing tobacco-based products. The
Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) supposedly even paid the Heartland Institute to
write a piece titled “In
Defense of Smokers,” quite possibly the least convincing article of all
time.

The newest players to the nicotine
game are companies such as Vapor Corp. (NASDAQ: VPCO), Electronic Cigarettes
Intl (OTC: ECIG), and 22nd Century Group Inc. (NYSEMKTS: XXII) who
are manufacturing electronic cigarettes. These e-cigs have propylene, glycol, glycerin, nicotine and
“flavorings,” but with no government oversight these can hardly be considered a
safe alternative.

Lexaria aims to change the standard
delivery mechanism system for nicotine to a much safer alternative where the
nicotine molecule is embedded into a fat molecule, which can then be placed
into a standard food product to be consumed orally. It is this enhanced delivery system that will
allow for people that are addicted to nicotine to stop inhaling the hundreds of
unnecessary chemicals that are found in smoke, and instead deliver the one and
only drug that their body is craving.

Lexaria has confirmed to Cannabis
Financial Network that their technology could be applicable to, and that they
are exploring recipe development of coffee, tea, hot chocolate and energy bars
all infused with nicotine as a safer alternative of nicotine delivery than
cigarettes, and more natural than E-cigarettes. Lexaria already has similar
products under development for the delivery of CBD, available nationwide in
Vipova Tea.

The Bioavailability of Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug’s (NSAID’s)

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are a class of drugs
that provides analgesic (pain-killing) and antipyretic (fever-reducing)
effects, and, in higher doses, anti-inflammatory effects.

One of the most
common of these drugs is Advil (Ibuprofen), manufactured by Pfizer
(NYSE: PFE), which being an analgesic means that it is non-narcotic and can be
used as a non-addictive alternative to narcotics. Ibuprofen was originally created because
aspirin caused gastrointestinal bleeding and ulcers in many people.

Lexaria’s technology aims to help
with the delivery system of NSAID’s in two different ways; the first is by
increasing the bioavailability of the product, which for orally administered
ibuprofen is approximately
80%, and the second is by allowing the product to be incorporated into a
food product. 

As any parent can tell you, trying
to get younger children to swallow pills can be a very frustrating
endeavor. If Lexaria is able to prove
that their technology not only allows for greater bioavailability of a drug,
but also is able to make any NSAID be incorporated into a food product, the
potential for a seismic shift in how drugs are administered to children could
be right around the corner.

Can a One a Day Vitamin Really Take Care of Your Needs?

The
small intestine is the primary site of digestion and serves as a major site of
vitamin absorption. Bioavailable nutrients enter the body at a cellular level
in the small intestine where they are absorbed into blood capillaries and lymph
fluids through the processes of osmosis, diffusion and active transport.

Using vitamin C as an example, the
bioavailability rate varies widely dependent on the saturable nature of the
vitamin along with the dose used. In
small quantities (less then 20 mg) vitamin C can have as high as a 98%
bioavailability rate, but in larger doses taken “one-a-day” in an attempt to
provide higher daily exposures, the bioavailability drops to as
little as 16%.

This obviously presents a problem: with
75 – 90 mg’s a day being the recommended dose, someone either needs to take 4
vitamin pills a day of 20 mg to obtain maximum absorption rates throughout the
day, or they need to take a single 160 mg pill in which half of the available
vitamin C is wasted. This presents an
entirely different problem though as a single large dose administered
orally in capsule or tablet form saturates the body’s ability to transport and
absorb bioavailable vitamin C, often leading to gastrointestinal problems.

Increasing Gross Margins by Increasing Bioavailability

After looking through the above
examples there is a consistent trend, if a company can increase the
bioavailability of a product they will need to use less of it during
manufacturing, thus increasing gross margins. Not only is this an important development for the potential
profitability and competitive landscape of an inventive company like Lexaria,
but it also leads to less waste industry-wide, and a lower likelihood of over
dosage of any of the molecules names in their patent applications.

This really is a win-win situation:
not only does the manufacturer need to use less of the product, but the body
also suffers less of the negative side effects of over dosing. Costs per dose might fall – or profit margins
for Lexaria rise – compared to sections of the affected industries that do not
employ this new technology.

In Vitro Testing Has Begun

John Docherty M.Sc.,
the president of Lexaria, has over twenty years’ experience in
the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries. Mr. Docherty was President and a board member
of PharmaDerm Laboratories Ltd., President and Chief Operating officer of Helix
BioPharma Corp. (TSX:HBP), and held positions at Astra Pharma Inc., Nu-Pharm Inc.
and PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ former global pharmaceutical industry consulting
practice. Needless to say, he is a man
with significant industry experience.

Mr. Docherty’s
experience has thus far proven instrumental in implementing their current
business plan to develop and commercialize cannabinoid products. CEO Chris
Bunka states “Lexaria could not have found a better-equipped person to
accelerate our transformation into a food-sciences company focused on unique
methods of delivering compounds like cannabidiol, through popular food categories.”

On May 20th the
company announced that it had engaged Absorption Systems LP to begin third
party in vitro tests using a human
intestinal model. The tests are designed
to evaluate the cannabidiol permeability of the patent-pending technology, and
should have results within 3-4 months of that original announcement. The 3-4 month time frame is a relatively
quick turnaround within the realm of testing, as the average time for a FDA
clinical trial via the standard approval process is approximately 6.5 years.

Conclusion

If Lexaria’s testing proves the
efficacy of their technology, virtually every manufacturer of nicotine,
NSAID’s, and vitamins should be willing to talk to the company for the
potential of licensing their technology. At this point the lowest hanging fruit may be orally consumed marijuana
products, as their current 8% average bioavailability leaves huge room for
improvement.

Investors interested in learning
more about Lexaria Corp. can visit them at their website at http://www.lexariaenergy.com/.

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SOURCE: Cannabis Financial Network

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