What topics does this cannabis study cover?

This study covers research on: CBD.

A powder system may protect CBD better than oil from degradation

Q: What did this research study find?

The *HP-β-CD* powder system showed **higher antioxidant activity** than the *MCT oil* formulation in the DPPH test.

Q: Where was this research published?

Published in Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis on March 17, 2026.

Matrix-dependent degradation kinetics and impurity fingerprinting of cannabidiol (CBD) in polymeric and lipid preservation systems.

Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis • March 17, 2026 • Highly Relevant

🤖

AI Summary

Cannabidiol (CBD) is vulnerable to degradation from light, heat, and oxidation, which can reduce its stability in products. This study compared a powder-based hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) inclusion complex with medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil, a common carrier in commercial formulations. The cyclodextrin system showed stronger antioxidant activity, with 89.2% activity compared with 83.6% for the oil system.

The largest difference appeared during light exposure: the HP-β-CD formulation retained more than 90% of its CBD, while the MCT oil system retained only about 20%. During longer-term testing, the powder retained 92–93% of CBD, compared with 88% in MCT oil, and it also generated fewer degradation by-products. For consumers, the findings suggest that the formulation and packaging of a CBD product—especially protection from light and heat—can be important for preserving its labeled cannabinoid content. The study supports cyclodextrin encapsulation as a promising approach for improving CBD stability, but it does not test effectiveness or safety in people.

💡 Key Findings

The HP-β-CD powder system showed higher antioxidant activity than the MCT oil formulation in the DPPH test.

Good

75%

Under 8000 lux light exposure, the cyclodextrin formulation retained more than 90% of its CBD, while the oil formulation retained approximately 20%.

High

85%

During stability testing, the HP-β-CD system retained 92–93% CBD, compared with 88% in MCT oil, and showed fewer detected cannabinoid degradation by-products.

High

80%

The results indicate that CBD degradation is matrix-dependent, with cyclodextrin encapsulation reducing apparent degradation rates relative to oil-based solubilization under the tested conditions.

High

80%

📄 Original Abstract

Cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive terpenophenolic compound derived from Cannabis sativa, exhibits broad-spectrum pharmacological activities but is highly susceptible to oxidative, photolytic, and thermal degradation, making it challenging to preserve and use in therapeutics. Therefore, this study compares the preservation efficiency of a powder-based hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) inclusion-complex system for cannabinoid stability and solubility and medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil, a common lipid-based carrier in commercial formulations. Formulation characterizations, including CBD content (HPLC), color change, solvent residues, moisture, particle size, and zeta potential, were measured. DPPH experiments revealed that the HP-β-CD complex exhibited higher antioxidant activity (89.2%, EC₅₀ = 45.3 µg/mL) than the MCT oil system (83.6%, EC₅₀ = 58.7 µg/mL), with ascorbic acid serving as the control (EC₅₀ = 12.4 µg/mL). Additionally, photostability testing (8000 lux) demonstrated superior CBD retention in the HP-β-CD complex (>90%) compared with MCT oil (∼20%), indicating substantial light-induced degradation in the oil system. HP-β-CD complex retained 92-93% CBD (k = 0.0084 week⁻¹; t₁/₂ = 82.5 weeks) versus 88% in MCT oil. At 40 °C, HP-β-CD complex preserved 86-87% CBD. GC-FID/GC-MS showed that HP-β-CD powder preserved CBD with only trace degradation (<0.1-1.0%). In contrast, MCT oil produced higher cannabinoid by-products (0.1-6.21%), and greater antioxidant degradation (2.5-8.6% vs 0.5-2.1%). The results suggested that CBD degradation follows matrix-dependent kinetics, with cyclodextrin encapsulation significantly reducing the apparent degradation rate constants relative to oil-based solubilization under identical stress conditions.

Paper Type

📄 Research

Publication

Journal: Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis
Published: March 17, 2026
PMID: 41864105
DOI: 10.1016/j.jpba.2026.117464

Authors (6)

Qurat Ul Ain Haidery State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, PR China.
Bo Han Shanghai Key Laboratory of New Drug Design, School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, PR China.
Rashid Saeed State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, PR China.
Chenyue Yan State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, PR China.
Xingyuan Ma State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, PR China. Electronic address: maxy@ecust.edu.cn.
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