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| Formula | C21H31O5P |
| Molar mass | 394.448 g·mol−1 |
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THC-O-phosphate is a water-solubleorganophosphate ester derivative oftetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which functions as a metabolicprodrug for THC itself. It was invented in 1978 in an attempt to get around the poor water solubility of THC and make it easier to inject for the purposes of animal research into its pharmacology and mechanism of action. The main disadvantage of THC phosphate ester is the slow rate of hydrolysis of the ester link, resulting in delayed onset of action and lower potency than the parent drug. Pharmacologically, it is comparable to the action ofpsilocybin as a metabolic prodrug forpsilocin.
THC phosphate ester is made by reacting THC withphosphoryl chloride usingpyridine as a solvent, following by quenching with water to produce THC phosphate ester. In the original research the less active but more stableisomerΔ8-THC was used, but the same reaction scheme could be used to make the phosphate ester of the more active isomer Δ9-THC.[1]
