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Can the drug cannabidiol have a positive effect on depression? This is what Sâmia Joca, who is associate professor at Aarhus University, is investigating. The Lundbeck Foundation is supporting the project with just over DKK five million.
2021.11.04 |
Sâmia Joca’s research project is entitled ‘Towards better therapeutics for depression with Cannabidiol’. Photo: Simon Fischel, Health Kommunikation.
Sâmia Joca from the Department of Biomedicine conducts research into new and more effective drugs for the treatment of depression and anxiety. She has received an Ascending Investigator research grant of DKK 5,017,540 from the Lundbeck Foundation.
In her research project, she examines whether cannabidiol (CBD) can be used to treat depression. The antidepressants which are currently available are not effective for all patients, and they only begin having an effect after 2-4 weeks of treatment. In addition, treatment with the only rapid-acting antidepressant (ketamine) on the market entails a high risk of the patient becoming dependent on the drug.
Animal experimentation with CBD demonstrates a rapid effect without the risk of side effects such as misuse and dependency. Sâmia Joca therefore hopes that the project will pave the way for better treatment of patients with depression.
The total amount granted under the Ascending Investigator programme in 2021 is DKK 55 million, with the money being shared between eleven researchers, all of whom are in the midst of their careers.
Contact
Associate Professor & PhD Sâmia Joca
Aarhus University, Department of Biomedicine
Email: sjoca@biomed.au.dk