University of Guelph Researchers Join Canurta to Scale Up Production of New Therapeutics

Canurta is pleased to announce the addition of University of Guelph researchers Dr. Kelly Boddington, Ph.D. and Dr. Eric Soubeyrand, Ph.D. to the team to scale up Canurta’s ability to biosynthetically produce rare hemp polyphenols.

Boddington and Soubeyrand, two Post Doctorate graduates, have world-class knowledge on the creation process of polyphenols from proprietary genomes, having worked in Dr. Tariq Ahktar’s lab for the last 5 years. They, along with Dr. Akhtar and Canurta’s Quality Assurance Manager Cameron Parry, recently published a paper titled, “Bibenzyl synthesis in Cannabis sativa Linnaeus” which identifies and supports the valuable contribution of bibenzyls (a class of hemp polyphenols) to the engineering of natural product therapeutics.

“There is a lot of conversation around the opioid crisis and what can be done to combat that, and having a potentially safer option on the market aside from NSAIDs and opioids would go a long way in that direction. Dr. Akhtar’s lab and his connections with various industry partners can take the work that we do in the lab and make something out of it that can directly benefit the public,” said Boddington.

Akeem Gardener, CEO of Canurta, has said, “Bringing on Kelly and Eric has been tremendously valuable to our team and our understanding of these rare molecules. We are committed to scaling up our various production platforms for cannflavins and molecules alike and I couldn’t be more excited to continue to work with Kelly and Eric from here on out – especially on our biosynthesis technology.”

“We chose to focus on polyphenols known as bibenzyls because they and their downstream derivatives have already shown anticancer, diabetic and/or inflammatory activities in in vitro assays. But the low concentrations at which they are found in the plant make taking them to the next phase of research very logistically difficult, which is where biosynthesis can really help.” Boddington adds.

Canurta to Participate in Two Major US Trade Expos and LA's leading NFT Conference

Our team is presenting with our partners at the following exhibitions. We look forward to connecting with prospective customers in the human and animal natural health spaces to bring new anti-inflammatory products to market.

Canurta will position itself as a leading voice in biotechnology and blockchain at NFT LA this year.