MGC Pharmaceuticals has completed the sale of its cannabis-based cosmetics business, MGC Derma, to private Canadian cannabis investment company CannaGlobal.
This allows the company to focus on developing its cannabis-based pharmaceutical products and deliver on its seed-to-pharma business model, while retaining exposure to the cannabis-based cosmetics market through a 10% stake in CannaGlobal.
As part of the sale, MGC will continue to supply raw cosmetics materials and produce cosmetics for CannaGlobal for at least five years.
The company received CAD$500,000 in November for an initial order under the supply agreement.
MGC Managing Director Roby Zomer said: “We are pleased to report that MGC Derma has now been fully divested and is under the CannaGlobal investment portfolio.”
“We are now fully focussed on growing MXC as a pure bio-pharma company with a direct pathway to commercialisation, as demonstrated following the recent arrival of our first CannEpil product in Australia.”
CannEpil is a cannabis-derived drug and was developed to assist epilepsy sufferers control their neurological disorder that is characterised by seizures, particularly where traditional drugs and medicines have no discernible impact on the condition.
A number of Australian medical practitioners have already been granted approval to prescribe CannEpil.
Earlier this month, MGC received key approval from Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration to commence the Phase IIB clinical trial of its “CogniCann” medical cannabis product for the treatment of dementia and Alzheimer’s patients.
This allows the company to start the recruitment of patients for the 16 week trial at the University of Notre Dame in WA, which remains on track to start in the first half of this year.
The trial will be carried out on a total of 50 patients aged 65 and over to assess the effects of the treatment on the symptoms of mild dementia and Alzheimer’s and the improvement of patient’s quality of life.
CogniCann is MGC’s second good manufacturing practice certified, investigative medicinal cannabis product with a specific ratio of tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol designed for the treatment of key dementia symptoms.
By Matt Birney
