WO2023223266A1

WO2023223266A1 - Cannabis-containing cigarettes

Info

Publication number: WO2023223266A1
Application number: PCT/IB2023/055142
Authority: WO
Inventors: Noa Raz; Aharon Eyal
Original assignee: Buzzelet Development And Technologies Ltd.
Priority date: 2022-05-20
Filing date: 2023-05-18
Publication date: 2023-11-23

Abstract

Provided is a cannabis-containing cigarette comprising a hollow elongated body having a proximal portion having an outer end configured for insertion into the mouth of a user, and a distal portion having an outer end configured to be lit. A cannabis material comprising a cannabinoid at a concentration of at least 5wt%; and a second smokable material comprising less than 2wt% cannabinoids are contained within the hollow elongated body. The cannabis material is present within the proximal portion of the hollow elongated body at a concentration of at least 35wt% of the total content of material within the proximal portion. The second material is present within the distal portion of the hollow elongated body at a concentration at least 70wt% of the total content of material within the distal portion. The length of the proximal portion is at least 2 times the length of the distal portion.

Description

CANNABIS-CONTAINING CIGARETTES

Cross-Reference to Related Applications

The present application gains priority from U.S Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 63/344,048 filed May 20, 2022, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set-forth herein.

Field of the Invention

The field of art to which this invention generally pertains is smokable cannabis-containing products, and more specifically to a smokable product comprising cannabis plant material comprising at least 5wt% by weight of a cannabinoid, and a second material comprising less than 2% by weight of cannabinoids.

Background of the invention

It is known in the art that during smoking, a flame is lit at the end of the smokable product, such as a cigarette furthest from the mouth and moves along the body of the cigarette in the direction of the mouth. The temperature of the flame is high, such that when active ingredients, such as cannabinoids found in cannabis material, are present in the cigarette, these are at least partially destroyed by the flame, and therefore not available for use and may even form toxic materials.

There is thus an unmet need for a cannabis-containing smokable product which is devoid of at least some of the disadvantages of the prior art.

Summary of the invention

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, there is provided cannabis-containing cigarette comprising

(a) a hollow elongated body having a proximal portion having an outer end configured for insertion into the mouth of a user, and a distal portion having an outer end configured to be lit; and (b) a mixture of a cannabis plant material and a second material contained within the hollow elongated body, wherein

(i) the cannabis plant material comprises at least one cannabinoid at a concentration of at least 5wt% of the total cannabis plant material;

(ii) the second material is smokable; and

(iii) the second material comprises less than 2% cannabinoids by weight of the total second material.

According to a further aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a device for improving the yield of active ingredient to a user during smoking of a cannabiscontaining cigarette, the device comprising

(a) a mouthpiece configured for insertion into the mouth of the user; and

(b) a cigarette holder for holding therein a cannabis-containing cigarette, the cigarette holder comprising a conduit of diameter greater than 0.5 mm, the conduit configured for attachment to the mouthpiece and to a proximal end of a cigarette held within the cigarette holder thereby providing, when in use, fluid communication of droplets having a diameter of between 0.01mm and 0.5mm between the mouthpiece and the cigarette.

According to a further aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a cannabis-containing cigarette comprising

(a) a hollow elongated body having a proximal portion having an outer end configured for insertion into the mouth of a user, and a distal portion having an outer end configured to be lit; and

(b) a cannabis plant material contained within the hollow elongated body, wherein at least one mark is provided on an outer surface of the hollow elongated body, wherein the mark indicates the distance of the end of the proximal portion from the outer end.

Brief description of the figures

Some embodiments of the invention are described herein with reference to the accompanying figures. The description, together with the figures, makes apparent to a person having ordinary skill in the art how some embodiments of the invention may be practiced. The figures are for the purpose of illustrative discussion and no attempt is made to show structural details of an embodiment in more detail than is necessary for a fundamental understanding of the invention. For the sake of clarity, some objects depicted in the figures are not to scale.

In the Figures:

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a cannabis-containing cigarette, in accordance with the principles of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a device for improving the yield of active ingredient to a user during smoking of a cannabis-containing cigarette, in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

Detailed description of the invention

The present invention, in at least some embodiments, relates to a cigarette comprising cannabis plant material comprising at least 5wt% by weight of a cannabinoid, and a second material comprising less than 2% by weight of cannabinoids.

The present inventors have surprisingly found that when an additional material comprising a very low cannabinoid content, or no cannabinoid, is added in a very small amount (in the region of no more than about 150 milligrams) to the cannabis-containing cigarette at the end furthest from the mouth of the smoker, the relative loss of active material prior to inhalation by the smoker is significantly reduced, thereby increasing utilization of the active ingredient during smoking. Loss of active material is known to be a major problem when smoking cannabinoids, since the inhaled smoke contains only about 10-25% of the cannabinoids in the cigarette.

The particulars shown herein are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the various embodiments of the present invention only and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of the invention. In this regard, no attempt is made to show details of the invention in more detail than is necessary for a fundamental understanding of the invention, the description making apparent to those skilled in the art how the several forms of the invention may be embodied in practice.

The present invention will now be described by reference to more detailed embodiments. This invention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The terminology used in the description of the invention herein is for describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention.

As used herein, the term “cannabis-containing cigarette” refers to a cigarette comprising at least 30wt% of a cannabis material, and may include a commercially -produced cigarette or a cigarette rolled by a user. For the sake of brevity, the term “cigarette” is used herein and is intended to encompass any smokable product in which cannabis is provided within an elongated body, including but not limited to a cigarette, a cigar and the like.

As used herein, the term “cannabinoid” refers to a compound that affects the endocannabinoid system. Cannabinoids are agonists or antagonists to receptors in the endocannabinoid system.

As used herein, the term “THC” refers to THCa (tetrahydrocannabinolic acid) and/or to THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) unless indicated otherwise. As used herein, the term “CBD” refers to CBDa (cannabidiolic acid) and/or to CBD (cannabidiol) unless indicated otherwise. As used herein, the term “CBG" refers to CBGa (cannabigerolic acid) and/or to CBG (cannabigerol) unless indicated otherwise. As used herein, the term “CBN” refers to CBNa (Cannabinolic acid) and/or to CBN (cannabinol) unless indicated otherwise. As used herein, the term “CBC” refers to CBCa (cannabichromenic acid) and/or to CBC (Cannabichromene) unless indicated otherwise. As used herein, the term “CBL” refers to CBLa (Cannabicycol acid) and/or to CBL (Cannabicyclol) unless indicated otherwise. As used herein, the term “THCV” refers to THCVa (tetrahydrocannabivarin acid) and/or to THCV (tetrahydrocannabivarin) unless indicated otherwise. As used herein, the term “CBDV” refers to CBDVa (cannabigerovarin acid).

Unless otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, reaction conditions, and so forth used in the specification and claims are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth in the following specification and attached claims are approximations that may vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by the present invention. At the very least, and not as an attempt to limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to the scope of the claims, each numerical parameter should be construed in light of the number of significant digits and ordinary rounding approaches. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as possible. Any numerical value, however, inherently contains certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements. Every numerical range given throughout this specification will include every narrower numerical range that falls within such broader numerical range, as if such narrower numerical ranges were all expressly written herein.

As used herein, the term “about” with regard to a numerical value is intended to indication +/- 10% of that value, unless otherwise specified.

As used herein, the terms “comprising”, “including”, "having" and grammatical variants thereof are to be taken as specifying the stated features, integers, steps or components but do not preclude the addition of one or more additional features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof. These terms encompass the terms "consisting of" and "consisting essentially of".

Additional advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a cannabis-containing cigarette comprising

(b) a cannabis plant material and a second material contained within the hollow elongated body, wherein

(i) the cannabis plant material comprises at least one cannabinoid at a concentration of at least about 5wt% of the total cannabis plant material;

(ii) the second material is smokable; and the second material comprises less than about 2% cannabinoids by weight of the total second material. According to some embodiments, at least one of the cannabis plant material and the second material is a homogenous material.

According to some embodiments, at least one of the cannabis plant material and the second material (such as the cannabis plant material, the second plant material or both) has a moisture content between about 1 wt% and about 20 wt% (such as about lwt%, about 2 wt%, about 3 wt%, about 4 wt%, about 5 wt%, about 6 wt%, about 7 wt%, about 8 wt%, about 9 wt%, about 10 wt%, about 11 wt%, about 12 wt%, about 13 wt%, about 14 wt%, about 15 wt%, about 16 wt%, about 17 wt%, about 18 wt%, about 19 wt% or about 20 wt%).

According to some embodiments, a moisture content of the second material is less than a moisture content of the cannabis plant material.

According to some embodiments, a weight/weight ratio of the cannabis plant material to the second material in the proximal portion differs from a weight/weight ratio of the cannabis plant material to the second material in the distal portion by at least 10%, such as 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 100% or more than 100%.

According to some embodiments at least one of the following applies:

(a) the length of the proximal portion is at least about 2 times the length of the distal portion;

(b) the cannabis plant material is present within the proximal portion of the hollow body at a concentration of at least about 35wt% of the total content of the proximal portion; and

(c) the second material is present within the distal portion of the hollow body at a concentration at least about 70wt% of the total content of the distal portion.

According to some such embodiments, provision of a lower cannabinoid concentration in the section closer to the outer end reduces the loss of cannabinoids due to degradation during lighting of the cigarette which occurs in this region when the cigarette is lit.

According to some embodiments, the hollow elongated body is a single, continuous structure, wherein the proximal portion and the distal portion differ one from the other with regard to the contents of the material contained therein. According to some alternative embodiments, the hollow elongated body comprises two contiguous portions wherein a first of the two portions constitutes the proximal portion and a second of the two portions constitutes the distal portion.

According to some embodiments, the cannabis plant material comprises one, two, three, four, five or more than five cannabinoids. According to some embodiments, the total concentration of cannabinoids in the cannabis plant material is about 5wt%, about 10wt%, about 15wt%, about 20wt%, about 25wt%, about 30wt%, about 35wt%, about 40wt%, about 45wt%, about 50wt%, about 55wt%, about 60wt%, about 65wt%, about 70wt%, about 75wt%₄ about 80wt%₄ about 85wt%, about 90wt%, about 95wt% or about 100wt% of the total weight of the cannabis plant material.

According to some embodiments, the second material comprises about 1.9%, about 1.8%, about 1.7%, about 1.6%, about 1.5%, about 1.4%, about 1.3%, about 1.2%, about 1.1%, about 1.0%, about 0.9%, about 0.8%, about 0.7%, about 0.6%, about 0.5%, about 0.4%, about 0.3%, about 0.2%, about 0.1%, about 0.09%, about 0.08%, about 0.07%, about 0.06%, about 0.05%, about 0.04%, about 0.03%, about 0.02%, about 0.01%, or even less than 0.01% of cannabinoids weight by weight of the total second material. According to some embodiments, the second material is substantially devoid of cannabinoids.

According to some embodiments, the length of the proximal portion is about 2 times, 3 times, about 4 times, about 5 times, about 6 times, about 7 times, about 8 times, about 9 times, about 10 times, or even more than about 10 times the length of the distal portion.

According to some embodiments, the cannabis plant material is present within the proximal portion of the hollow body at a concentration of about 35wt%, about 40wt%, about 45wt%, about 50wt%, about 55wt%, about 60wt%, about 65%, 70wt%, about 75wt%, about 80wt%, about 85wt%, about 90wt%, about 95wt% or even about 100wt% of the total material within the proximal portion.

According to some embodiments, the second material is present within the distal portion of the hollow body at a concentration of about 70wt%, about 75wt%, about 80wt%, about 85wt%, about 90wt%, about 95wt% or even about 100wt% of the total material within the distal portion.

According to some embodiments, the proximal portion comprises at least two sections, wherein a first of the two sections is closer to the outer end and a second of the two sections is further from the outer end; a concentration of the cannabis plant material in the section closer to the outer end is smaller than a concentration of the cannabis plant material in the section further from the outer end; and a concentration of the second material in the section closer to the outer end is greater than a concentration of the second material in the section further from the outer end. The present inventors have found that due to migration and settling of material within a cigarette, the cannabis content in the cigarette smoke increases with the progress of smoking, Thus, providing the material within sections of the cigarette having similar lengths provides different doses of cannabinoids.

According to some embodiments, the cannabis plant material comprises cannabis flower.

According to some embodiments, the second material comprises pre-extracted cannabis plant material.

According to some embodiments, the length of the distal portion is less than about 1cm, such as about 0.9cm, about 0.8cm, about 0.7cm, about 0.6cm, about 0.5 cm, about 0.4cm, about 0.3cm, about 0.2cm, about 0.1cm, or even less than about 0.1cm.

According to some embodiments, the cannabis-containing cigarette comprises between about O.lgram and 1.2gram of the cannabinoid-comprising plant material, such as about O.lgram, about 0.2gram, about 0.3gram, about 0.4gram, about 0.5gram, about 0.6gram, about 0.7gram, about 0.8gram, about 0.9gram, about l.Ogram, about l.lgram or about 1.2gram.

According to some embodiments, the cannabis-containing cigarette comprises between about 0.02gram and 0.3gram total weight of cannabinoid, such as about 0.02gram, about 0.03gram, about 0.04gram, about 0.05gram, about 0.06gram, about 0.07gram, about 0.08gram, about 0.09gram, about 0. Igram, about 0.1 Igram, about 0.12gram, about 0.13 gram, about 0.14gram, about 0.15gram, about 0.16gram, about 0.17gram, about 0.18 gram, about 0.19gram, about 0.20gram, about 0.2 Igram, about 0.22gram, about 0.23gram, about 0.24gram, about 0.25gram, about 0.26gram, about 0.27gram, about 0.28gram, about 0.29gram or about 0.3gram total weight of cannabinoid.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a method for administering at least one cannabinoid, the method comprising smoking a cannabiscontaining cigarette as disclosed herein.

According to some embodiments of the method, at least about 20%, such as about 25%, about 30%, about 35%, about 40%, about 45%, about 50%, about 55%, about 60%, about 65%, about 70%, about 75%, about 80%, about 85%, about 90%, about 95% or even about 100% of the cannabinoid in the cannabis-containing cigarette is inhaled.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, there is provided the cannabis-containing cigarette as disclosed herein for use in therapy. The present inventors have further discovered that in order to smoke a cannabis-containing cigarette completely without burning the active ingredients, it is advantageous to provide a conduit between a proximal end of the cigarette and the mouth of the user, to allow cooling of the steam produced during smoking. However, droplets produced by cooling of the steam may get stuck in the conduit, causing the partial loss of active ingredients. Such droplets generally have a diameter of between 0.01mm and 0.5mm. The present inventors have identified that use of a conduit having a diameter of greater than 0.5mm enables such droplets to pass freely to the mouth of the user, thereby minimizing loss of active ingredients and increasing efficiency of the smoking process.

According to an aspect of some embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a device for improving the yield of active ingredient to a user during smoking of a cannabiscontaining cigarette, the device comprising

(a) a mouthpiece configured for insertion into the mouth of the user; and

(b) a cigarette holder for holding therein a cannabis-containing cigarette, the cigarette holder comprising a conduit of diameter greater than 0.5 mm, the conduit configured for attachment to the mouthpiece and to a proximal end of a cigarette held within the cigarette holder, thereby providing, when in use, fluid communication of droplets having a diameter of between 0.01mm and 0.5mm between the mouthpiece and the cigarette.

(b) a cannabis plant material contained within the hollow elongated body.

(b) a cannabis plant material contained within the hollow elongated body, wherein at least one mark is provided on an outer surface of the hollow elongated body, wherein the mark indicates a distance of an end of the proximal portion from the outer end. As used herein, the term “mark” is intended to refer to a visual indicator of a position on the outer surface. The mark may be in the form of a line, a dot or the like and may be provided by drawing, printing, embossing, engraving or the like.

The purpose of the mark is to provide an indication to a user of when a first portion of a cigarette comprising at least two portions has been smoked, wherein the first portion and the second portion provide equal doses of cannabinoids. The at least two portions are intended for administration at different times. The user thus smokes the cigarette until the first portion is burnt to the position of the mark. The provision of the marks therefore overcomes the problem of an increase in cannabinoid concentration in the smoked material which occurs during the smoking process, such that the proximal region of the cigarette (/'.<?. the region closest to the mouth of the user) comprises a higher concentration of cannabinoids than that at the distal end. Hence, a smaller volume of the material from the proximal end is smoked to provide a cannabinoid dose equal to that from the distal end.

According to some embodiment, the at least one mark comprises at least two marks, wherein a first of the at least two marks indicates a distance of an end of the proximal portion from the outer end, and a second of the at least two marks indicates a distance of an end of the distal portion from the outer end.

According to some embodiments, the distance between the first mark and the outer end is less than a distance between the first mark and the second mark.

According to some embodiments, the proximal portion comprises at least two sections, wherein a first of the two sections is closer to the outer end and a second of the two sections is further from the outer end; and wherein the at least two marks further comprise at least a third mark, wherein the third mark indicates a distance of an end of the first section of the proximal portion from the outer end, wherein a distance between the third mark and the outer end is less than a distance between the third mark and the first mark.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is schematically shown a cannabis-containing cigarette 10 in accordance with the principles of the present invention, cigarette 10 comprising a hollow elongated body 12 having a distal portion 14 having an outer end 16 configured to be lit, and a proximal portion 18 having an outer end 20 configured to be inserted into the mouth of a user. A cannabis material 22 comprising at least one cannabinoid at a concentration of at least 5wt% of the total cannabis plant material; and a second smokable material 24 comprising less than 2% cannabinoids by weight of the total second material are contained within hollow elongated body 12. Cannabis material 22 is present within proximal portion 18 of hollow elongated body 12 at a concentration of at least 35wt% of the total content of material within proximal portion 18. Second material 24 is present within distal portion 14 of hollow elongated body 12 at a concentration at least 70wt% of the total content of material within distal portion 14. The length of proximal portion 18 is at least 2 times the length of distal portion 14.

FIG. 2 schematically depicts a device 30 for improving the yield of active ingredient to a user during smoking of a cannabis-containing cigarette. Device 30 comprises a mouthpiece 32 configured for insertion into the mouth of a user; and a cigarette holder 34 having a proximal end 40 and a distal end 38, wherein proximal end 40 is configured for attachment to mouthpiece 32. Cigarette holder 34 is configured for insertion therein of a cannabis-containing cigarette

(not shown) via distal end 38. Cigarette holder comprises a conduit 36 of diameter greater than 0.5 mm, providing fluid communication of droplets having a diameter of between 0.01mm and 0.5mm between mouthpiece 32 and a proximal end of a cigarette held within cigarette holder 34.

Claims

1. A cannabis-containing cigarette comprising

(b) a mixture of a cannabis plant material and a second material contained within said hollow elongated body, wherein

(i) said cannabis plant material comprises at least one cannabinoid at a concentration of at least 5wt% of the total cannabis plant material;

(ii) said second material is smokable; and

(iii) said second material comprises less than 2% cannabinoids by weight of the total second material.

2. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein at least one of said cannabis plant material and second material is a homogeneous material.

3. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein at least one of said cannabis plant material and second material has a moisture content between lwt% and 20wt%.

4. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein a moisture content of said second material is less than a moisture content of said cannabis plant material.

5. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein a weight/weight ratio of said cannabis plant material to said second material in said proximal portion differs from a weight/weight ratio of said cannabis plant material to said second material in said distal portion by at least 10%.

6. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein

(a) a length of said proximal portion is at least 2 times a length of said distal portion;

(b) said cannabis plant material is present within said proximal portion at a concentration of at least 35wt% of the total content of the proximal portion; and

(c) said second material is present within said distal portion of said hollow body at a concentration of at least 70wt% of the total content of the distal portion.

7. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein said proximal portion comprises at least two sections, wherein a first of said two sections is closer to said outer end and a second of said two sections is further from said outer end; a concentration of said cannabis plant material in said section closer to said outer end is smaller than a concentration of said cannabis plant material in said section further from said outer end; and a concentration of said second material in said section closer to the said outer end is greater than a concentration of said second material in said section further from said outer end.

8. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein said cannabis plant material comprises cannabis flower.

9. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein said second material comprises pre-extracted cannabis plant material.

10. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, wherein the length of said distal portion is less than 1cm.

11. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, comprising between O.lgram and 1.2gram of said cannabinoid-comprising plant material.

12. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 1, comprising between 0.02gram and 0.3gram cannabinoid.

13. A method for administering at least one cannabinoid, comprising smoking a cannabiscontaining cigarette according to claim 1.

14. The method of Claim 7, wherein at least 20% of the cannabinoid in said cannabiscontaining cigarette is inhaled.

15. A device for improving the yield of active ingredient to a user during smoking of a cannabis-containing cigarette, the device comprising

(a) a mouthpiece configured for insertion into the mouth of the user; and

(b) a cigarette holder for holding therein a cannabis-containing cigarette, said cigarette holder comprising a conduit of diameter greater than 0.5 mm, said conduit configured for attachment to said mouthpiece and to a proximal end of a cigarette held within said cigarette holder, thereby providing, when in use, fluid communication of droplets having a diameter of between 0.01mm and 0.5mm between said mouthpiece and said cigarette.

16. A cannabis-containing cigarette comprising

(a) a hollow elongated body having a proximal portion having an outer end configured for insertion into the mouth of a user, and a distal portion having an outer end configured to be lit; and (b) a cannabis plant material contained within said hollow elongated body, wherein at least one mark is provided on an outer surface of said hollow elongated body, wherein said mark indicates a distance of an end of said proximal portion from said outer end.

17. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 16, wherein said at least one mark comprises at least two marks, wherein a first of said at least two marks indicates a distance of an end of said proximal portion from said outer end, and a second of said at least two marks indicates a distance of an end of said distal portion from said outer end.

18. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 17, wherein said distance between said first mark and said outer end is less than a distance between said first mark and said second mark.

19. The cannabis-containing cigarette of claim 17, wherein said proximal portion comprises at least two sections, wherein a first of said two sections is closer to said outer end and a second of said two sections is further from said outer end; and wherein said at least two marks further comprise at least a third mark, wherein said third mark indicates a distance of an end of said first section of said proximal portion from said outer end, wherein a distance said third between said third mark and said outer end is less than a distance between said third mark and said first mark.