Four grants worth $7.3million have been awarded to University of California Los Angeles researchers for research on cannabis.
All four UCLA funded research studies are expected to begin in this calendar year, thanks to the California Department of Cannabis Control.
Two million dollars will fund the first project, which involves evaluating new and rare cannabinoids. The goal is to gain a better understanding of their therapeutic potential and any possible side-effects. These insights could help to develop more efficient and safer cannabinoid drugs.
Second (also getting $2 million), the study looks at California’s notorious illicit cannabis market, nearly a decade following state legalization. The study will explore why cannabis is still purchased from non-regulated sources by consumers and examine illicit products to test for contamination.
Receiving $2.1 million, a controlled clinical study will identify the immediate and long-term health effects of smoked and oral cannabis on the heart.
A $1.2million project is the fourth one, which will create a validated reference to terpenes present in cannabis. This validation will be used in order for scientific standards to be established and policies based on evidence in products that are commercially sold. Terpenes, which are aromatic, natural organic compounds, are the ones responsible for plants’ distinct flavors, smells and colors. Beyond this, terpenes are thought to work in conjunction with cannabinoids, and other plant compounds, to produce therapeutic effects. It’s known as the “entourage effects”.
Our faculty is generating evidence that can be used to create a regulation that puts public health first. said Ziva CooperThe UCLA Center for Cannabis and Cannabinoids is directed by Professor and Director, Dr. David A. Rosenberg.
Department of Cannabis Control has awarded almost $30 million in funding to 22 research project by the end of December 2025. Since 2020, the Department has funded 72 research projects with nearly $80,000,000. The full list and project summary of all 2025 Cannabis Academic Research Grants. can be found here.
You can also find out more about the following: UCLA Center for Cannabis and Cannabinoids The Jane and Terry Semel institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at the University is where this project was born.
Our mission is to answer the most urgent questions about the impacts of legalizing cannabis through scientific research and discussion across disciplines.