1
Receptor assay cells and tissue
What this stage can show
How a molecule behaves at a target: which receptor or enzyme it binds, in which direction, and how strongly, measured in a dish under controlled conditions.
What it cannot
Whether any of that happens in a living body at a dose a person would take. A mechanism is a reason to run the next experiment, not a result in people.
The grade a claim usually holds when its evidence stops here
- grade: Low“limited evidence · unclear”Limited and low-confidence — sparse, indirect, or single-source data.
- grade: Hypothesized“proposed mechanism”Proposed and plausible — but not yet shown.
2
Animal model mouse or rat
What this stage can show
Whether the mechanism produces a measurable effect in a whole organism, and at roughly what exposure, under a disease model built to resemble the human condition.
What it cannot
Whether people respond the same way. Doses, metabolism and the model itself all differ, and an effect seen in animals is often not reproduced in people.
The grade a claim usually holds when its evidence stops here
- grade: Low“limited evidence · unclear”Limited and low-confidence — sparse, indirect, or single-source data.
3
Small human pilot one dose, a few dozen people
What this stage can show
Whether an acute, single-dose exposure is tolerated and whether a signal appears on a self-reported or short-term measure, usually against placebo in healthy volunteers.
What it cannot
Whether the signal survives repeated dosing, a clinical population, or a second group of investigators. One small trial is one observation.
The grade a claim usually holds when its evidence stops here
- grade: Low“limited evidence · unclear”Limited and low-confidence — sparse, indirect, or single-source data.
Registry ceiling for a claim at this stage: grade: Emerging “may · early evidence suggests” The gap between the chip above and this one is what a second, larger trial would have to close.
4
Placebo-controlled trial randomised, repeated dose
What this stage can show
Whether a pre-declared primary endpoint moves more on the compound than on placebo, in a population that has the condition, over a course of dosing.
What it cannot
Whether the finding is robust. A single trial can be right for the wrong reasons; a null primary endpoint counts against the claim even when other measures look promising.
The grade a claim usually holds when its evidence stops here
- grade: Not supported“evidence does not support”Tested, and the evidence does NOT support it. This is a finding against the claim — not an absence of evidence.
5
Independent replication an unaffiliated group
What this stage can show
That the effect is not an artefact of one team, one site or one sponsor. Replicated human data is what the top of the ladder is defined by.
What it cannot
Very little, which is the point. Settled is not the same as complete: dose, duration and who benefits still take further work.
The grade a claim usually holds when its evidence stops here
No claim yet No CBG claim in our registry has evidence that reaches this stage. The ladder reserves its top rung for it: grade: Established Settled science — replicated human data, or biochemistry that is not in dispute.
Claims that stop here
None in our registry. The station is drawn so the distance is visible.