Moderators: Elvis, DrVolin, Jeff
Volcano Vaporizer - Advanced Technology
The primary requirement of a vaporizer is the capacity to maintain the temperature just above the point of vaporization in order to obtain an optimum level of both efficiency and flavour, along with minimized production of harmful substances. Other important points are the greatest level of safety for the user, ease of operation and application which is separate from the vaporizing process.
The Volcano Vaporization System solves the problem of hot air generation by employing an astoundingly simple principle: the air is pumped through a heated aluminium block and thus inevitably assumes the desired temperature. A diaphragm pump ensures that the air flow remains constant, and volumetric flow fluctuations are thus ruled out. This means that the Volcano Vaporizers have the most accurate temperature control of all vaporizers.
However, the main distinguishing feature of the Volcano Vaporization System is the patented valve balloon into which the vapor generated is pumped. The valve balloon can be completely detached from the device after filling and the contents inhaled at the user's ease. This ensures that the application is absolutely safe, as vaporization occurs previously and the user does not come into contact with glass, heat or electricity during inhalation.
This is the modern compilation for all your hemp questions, with the answers coming from years of hemp research done in Europe. If you don’t have a degree in agronomy or a heavy background in agriculture and terminology then this book may be a bit of a hard read, but it does cover all of the information that is needed to piece together the results of dozens of years of hemp farming in Europe.
Its contents include a detailed look at Cannabis genes, taxonoly and hemp breeding techniques, Biogenetic info, THC variations, crop rotation, methods of planting, seeding rates, growing conditions, nitrogen trials, study of the potential yield of hemp crops, a survey of the pest to hemp, plus genetic improvement, and advances in biotechnological approaches, pulping hemp fiber, and a look at hemp nutrition. Advances in Hemp Research is a valuable reference book for all hemp researchers. It’s like the official hemp science book. It is filled with great graphs and tables to help the readeer see the results. The info is based in Europe, which means that the information doesn’t directly correlate to American soil and conditions, but it gives us the best view of what to expect if we do ever get to grow hemp in America.
This is the book I was waiting for. I had trouble understanding all the technical issues, but I am better off for getting through it. It’s not reading for fun, but for knowledge. I used this book extensively in my hunt to find the facts!
Distributed by Haworth Press – 800 HAWORTH – getinfo@haworthpressinc.com
Shares in GW Pharmaceuticals jumped more than 40 per cent on Wednesday after positive trial results for Sativex, its cannabis-based medicine, which could pave the way for approval of the drug by UK and European regulators.
“This is the third study in the past six months that we have reported which have shown unequivocally positive results,” said Stephen Wright, director of research and development.
During the 16-week trial, each patient self-administered between eight and nine daily doses of Sativex, which is produced in an oral spray roughly the size of a lipstick. Sativex reduced spasticity by 48 per cent in patients.
“These are clear efficacy results,” said Paul Cuddon, a biotechnology analyst at KBC Peel Hunt.
“This is the sort of data that will convince patients and clinicians that Sativex is effective. The share price has quickly reacted to the good news, but with the results that have been achieved there could be more upside.”
GW said that it had amended the terms of its licensing deal with Almiral, which will market the drug in most of Europe if it is approved.
Approval of SATIVEX® with Conditions
Fact Sheet
What is SATIVEX®?
SATIVEX® is a cannabis based medicine containing Tetranabinex® and Nabidiolex® extracts of chemically and genetically characterised Cannabis sativa L. plants. The principal active components are delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD).
Health Canada has approved SATIVEX® with conditions, under the Notice of Compliance with Conditions (NOC/c) policy. This authorisation reflects the promising nature of the clinical evidence which must be confirmed with further studies. Products approved under Health Canada's NOC/c policy, have demonstrated promising benefit, are of high quality and possess an acceptable safety profile based on a benefit/risk assessment for the approved use.
Cannabis-induced cytotoxicity in leukemic cell lines: the role of the cannabinoid receptors and the MAPK pathway
Thomas Powles, Robert te Poele, Jonathan Shamash, Tracy Chaplin, David Propper, Simon Joel, Tim Oliver, and Wai Man Liu
From the New Drug Study Group, St Bartholomew's Hospital (SBH), London, United Kingdom; the Department of Medical Oncology, SBH, London, United Kingdom; the Centre for Cancer Therapeutics, Institute of Cancer Research, Surrey, United Kingdom; the Department of Medical Oncology, Charterhouse Square, London, United Kingdom; and the Barry Reed Oncology Laboratory, SBH, London, United Kingdom.
9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the active metabolite of cannabis. THC causes cell death in vitro through the activation of complex signal transduction pathways. However, the role that the cannabinoid 1 and 2 receptors (CB1-R and CB2-R) play in this process is less clear. We therefore investigated the role of the CB-Rs in mediating apoptosis in 3 leukemic cell lines and performed microarray and immunoblot analyses to establish further the mechanism of cell death. We developed a novel flow cytometric technique of measuring the expression of functional receptors and used combinations of selective CB1-R and CB2-R antagonists and agonists to determine their individual roles in this process. We have shown that THC is a potent inducer of apoptosis, even at 1 x IC50 (inhibitory concentration 50%) concentrations and as early as 6 hours after exposure to the drug. These effects were seen in leukemic cell lines (CEM, HEL-92, and HL60) as well as in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Additionally, THC did not appear to act synergistically with cytotoxic agents such as cisplatin. One of the most intriguing findings was that THC-induced cell death was preceded by significant changes in the expression of genes involved in the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signal transduction pathways. Both apoptosis and gene expression changes were altered independent of p53 and the CB-Rs.
Title: Hempseed as a nutritional resource: an overview.
Personal Authors: Callaway, J. C.
Author Affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Kuopio, FIN-70211 Kuopio, Finland.
Editors: Mandolino, G., Ranalli, P.
Document Title: Euphytica
Abstract:
The seed of Cannabis sativa L. has been an important source of nutrition for thousands of years in Old World cultures. Non-drug varieties of Cannabis, commonly referred to as hemp, have not been studied extensively for their nutritional potential in recent years, nor has hempseed been utilized to any great extent by the industrial processes and food markets that have developed during the 20th century. Technically a nut, hempseed typically contains over 30% oil and about 25% protein, with considerable amounts of dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals. Hempseed oil is over 80% in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), and is an exceptionally rich source of the two essential fatty acids (EFAs) linoleic acid (18:2 omega-6) and alpha-linolenic acid (18:3 omega-3). The omega-6 to omega-3 ratio (n6/n3) in hempseed oil is normally between 2:1 and 3:1, which is considered to be optimal for human health. In addition, the biological metabolites of the two EFAs, gamma-linolenic acid (18:3 omega-6; 'GLA') and stearidonic acid (18:4 omega-3; 'SDA'), are also present in hempseed oil. The two main proteins in hempseed are edestin and albumin. Both of these high-quality storage proteins are easily digested and contain nutritionally significant amounts of all essential amino acids. In addition, hempseed has exceptionally high levels of the amino acid arginine. Hempseed has been used to treat various disorders for thousands of years in traditional oriental medicine. Recent clinical trials have identified hempseed oil as a functional food, and animal feeding studies demonstrate the long-standing utility of hempseed as an important food resource.
Publisher: Kluwer Academic Publishers
WE HAVE THE TOOLS, SO LET'S FEED THE WORLD (or at least the birds)!
Finola is another great weapon of mass production in the war on hunger, poverty and even ignorance. This plant is an excellent source of sustainable food, fiber and medicine. The exceptional fatty acid profile in Finola® oil offers a rich source of essential fatty acids (EFAs); polyunsaturated omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, including significant amounts of GLA and SDA. We can't make EFAs ourselves, so we have to get them from the daily diet. The EFAs are needed to produce many important things in our bodies, including optimal nerve functions throughout the brain and central nervous system. So at Finola, we're also fighting a guerrilla war on ignorance, at the neuronal level, one fatty acid at a time!
Part One
by Lynn Osburn
Seeds of the plant cannabis sativa, hemp seed, contain all the essential amino acids and essential fatty acids necessary to maintain healthy human life. No other single plant source has the essential amino acids in such an easily digestible form, nor has the essential fatty acids in as perfect a ratio to meet human nutritional needs.
The importance of hemp seed nutrients to human health cannot be fully appreciated without some understanding of bio-chemistry in life. Unfortunately, any attempt to understand the flow of life leads into the realm of the most troublesome of the three infinities -- the infinitely complex.
Some deep thinkers believe life is a paradox not to be understood but experienced to the fullest. However, the Sages have said, "Know thyself." At any rate it is paradoxic to attempt simplifying the infinite complexity of flowing life. Yet, it is far better for the health and development of any thinking and feeling, uniquely individual human being, to pursue knowledge than to lounge in ignorance.
One out of two Americans win die from the effects of cardiovascular disease (CVD). One out of four Americans will die from cancer. Researchers believe cancers erupt when immune system response is weakened. Pioneers in the fields of biochemistry and human nutrition now believe CVD and most cancers are really diseases of fatty degeneration caused by the continued over-consumption of saturated fats and refined vegetable oils that turn essential fatty acids into carcinogenic killers. And if this is not scary enough, more Americans are succumbing to immune deficiency diseases than ever before. Sadly it is ignorance of human nutritional needs that will cause this overwhelming majority of Americans to die slowly from these afflictions -- the greatest killers in affluent nations.
HEMP SEED PROTEINS AND THE
BUILDING BLOCKS OF LIFE AND IMMUNITY
There are eight amino acids the human body cannot make and two more the body cannot make in sufficient quantity, so they are essential to life. A diet without any one of them will eventually cause disease and death. These essential amino acids, along with eleven others the body can make from them, are chained together in accordance to genetic guidelines, via RNA formats from DNA blueprints, into structural proteins that give body to life, and into enzymes (globular proteins) that carry out the mechanics of living.
Nearly three quarters of body solids are proteins. The body is literally constructed and maintained by an infinitely complex system that simply builds proteins from amino acid sub units. Every amino acid consists of an amine and a carboxyl bound to the same carbon atom. All but the smallest amino acid have one, more or less complex, carbon containing side chain connected to the carbon atom shared by the amine and carboxyl groups. The amine group, ND, is slightly basic; the carboxyl group, COOH, is a mild acid. The amine group of one amino acid unites with the carboxyl group of another forming a peptide link. Proteins are made of amino acid peptide chains in specific sequences. The number of possible amino acid peptide combinations is infinite.
Peptide chains can bend, twist and unite with other peptide chains by forming weak hydrogen bonds between nitrogen and oxygen atoms along the chain. Amino acids can also form bonds through side chain linkages. All three types of amino acid bonding methods contribute to the infinite possibility of protein shapes and reactivity potentials. Though each species builds proteins unique to itself, life can tailor new ones if challenged by the pressures of existence.
Hemp is not unique in having all the essential amino acids in its embryonic seed. Flax seeds also contain all the essential amino acids as do many other seeds in the plant kingdom. What is unique about hemp seed protein is that 65% of it is globulin edistin. That is the highest in the plant kingdom.
Globulins are one of seven classes of simple proteins. Simple proteins are constructed from amino acids and contain no non-protein substances. Globulins are in seeds and animal blood. Edistins are found in seeds; serum globulin is in blood. Edistins are plant globulins. And globulins along with albumins are classified as globular proteins. All enzymes, antibodies, many hormones, hemoglobin and fibrogin (the body converts fibrogin into non-soluble, fibrin, a blood clotting agent) are globular proteins. They carry out the main work of living.
Albumin, globulin and fibrogin are the three major types of plasma proteins. Plasma is the fluid portion of blood that supplies nutrients to tissues. And the three protein types: serum albumin, serum globulin and fibrogin, compose about 80% of plasma solids. These plasma proteins serve as a reservoir of rapidly available amino acids should any body tissues be in need.
Plant seeds contain albumin and globulin but no fibrogin. Albumin is the nutritive material that fills the space in the seed between the embryo and the seed coat. The embryo needs albumin to fuel its initial growth until photosynthesis begins. Globulin edistins within the embryo guarantee this new life has the enzymes necessary for metabolic activity.
Globulin is the third most abundant protein in the human body. Globulins perform many enzymatic (causing reactions to take place) functions within the plasma itself. More importantly, they are responsible for both the natural and acquired immunity a person has against invading organisms. The body uses globulin proteins to make antibodies which attack infecting agents (antigens) that invade the body. Globulins like gamma globulin are absolutely essential to maintain a healthy immune system. They neutralize alien microorganisms and toxins.
Globulins are divided into three classes: alpha, beta and gamma globulins. Alpha and beta globulins operate as transport vehicles by combining with other substances and carry protein from one part of the body to another. They haul the materials needed to build new and replace worn or damaged bodily structures. Gamma globulins are divided into five classes of antibodies called immunoglobulins. All are formed to combat specific cell invading antigens. They comprise the body's first line of defense against disease and infection. Immunoglobulins are produced by B lymphocyte (white blood cells) plasma cell clones located in lymph system nodes. Infecting antigens normally must pass through the lymph system before entering the blood stream.
Regarding human protein requirement: "Qualitively, it is considered desirable to secure amino acids similar to those of human tissues, both as to kinds and relative quantities of the various kinds." [Textbook of Anatomy and Physiology, Kimber, Gray, Stackpole, 1943]
During digestion proteins in food are broken down into amino acids. The amino acids are then taken into the body and reassembled into human proteins according to need and the availability of the amino acids necessary to make specific proteins.
The body needs the necessary kinds of amino acids in sufficient quantity in order to make proteins such as the globulins. Proper quantities of the right kinds may not be available to the body much of the time. So even though the body has enough essential amino acids available to prevent deficiency diseases, it may not have enough to build quantities of immunoglobulins necessary for the immune system to repel infection.
The best way to insure the body has enough amino acid material to make the globulins is to eat foods high in globulin proteins. Since hemp seed protein is 65% globulin edistin, and also includes quantities of albumin, its protein is readily available in a form quite similar to that found in blood plasma. Eating hemp seeds gives the body all the essential amino acids required to maintain health, and provides the necessary kinds and amounts of amino acids the body needs to make human serum albumin and serum globulins like the immune enhancing gamma globulins. Eating hemp seeds could aid, if not heal, people suffering from immune deficiency diseases. This conclusion is supported by the fact that hemp seed was used to treat nutritional deficiencies brought on by tuberculosis, a severe nutrition blocking disease that causes the body to waste away. [Czechoslovakia Tubercular Nutritional Study, 1955]
ANTIBODIES
Antibodies are globulin proteins programmed to destroy antigens (any substance eliciting a response from lymphocytes: bacteria, viruses, toxins, living and dead tissue, internal debris, etc.). Circulating in blood plasma like mines floating in a harbor antibodies await contact with the enemy, then initiate a cascade of corrosive enzymes that bore holes in the antigen surface causing it to break apart.
Antibodies are custom designed to neutralize or disintegrate one specific type of antigen. White blood cells called B cell lymphocytes seek out and lock-on to antigenic proteins or sugars on the invader's surface. The B cell then uses that lock and key pattern to make antibodies tailored to that antigen only. It also will make clones of itself called plasma cells. Most of the clones begin producing antibodies for that antigen. Others become memory cells which may spend years wandering through the blood stream looking for that specific antigen. If the body is exposed to it again the memory cells lock-on to one and begin producing plasma cell clones and a flood of antibodies that wipe out the invader. One lymphocyte can divide into hundreds of plasma cells in a few days. A mature plasma cell can make about 2000 antibodies every second for the few days it lives. This is how the body acquires immunity.
The body's ability to resist and recover from illness depends upon how rapidly it can produce massive amounts of antibodies to fend off the initial attack. If the globulin protein starting material is in short supply the army of antibodies may be too small to prevent the symptoms of sickness from setting in.
Hemp seed is the premier plant-seed provider of globulin starting material -- the highest in the plant kingdom. Eating hemp seeds will insure the immune system has the reservoir of immunoglobulin resources needed to make disease destroying antibodies.
Next issue: Part II, Hempseed Oils and the Flow of Life Force
here: http://www.ratical.org/renewables/hempseed2.html
UPDATE 3-GW Pharma files cannabis drug for MS in Europe
* Multiple sclerosis drug Sativex filed for European OK
* Firm posts maiden first-half profit of 4 mln pounds
* Plans to test new cannabinoid medicine for dyslipidaemia
* Shares up 8 percent
(Adds comments from R&D head, analyst, latest shares)
By Ben Deighton and Ben Hirschler
LONDON, May 20 (Reuters) - A pioneering cannabis-based medicine for multiple sclerosis from GW Pharmaceuticals (GWP.L) has been filed for approval in Europe, paving the way for its potential approval at the end of 2009 or early in 2010.
Following numerous delays, the submission to regulators in Britain and Spain is a landmark for the British drugmaker, which also announced on Wednesday it had made a maiden net profit of 4.0 million pounds ($6.2 million) in the six months to March 31 from a 4.2 million loss a year ago.
Shares in the company rose 7.6 percent to 85 pence by midday after touching a high of 89.5p.
Clinical trials have shown GW's drug Sativex, which is sprayed under the tongue, reduces spasticity in multiple sclerosis patients who do not respond adequately to existing therapies.
If it is approved, Sativex will be marketed in Britain by Germany's Bayer (BAYG.DE) and in the rest of Europe by Spain's Almirall (ALM.MC).
Following the filings in Britain and Spain, submissions for approval will made in other European countries during 2010.
Further clinical trials need to be completed before the medicine is ready for submission for approval in the United States, where GW's partner is Otsuka.
Sativex became the world's first cannabis medicine to win regulatory approval when it was approved in Canada in 2005.
The drug -- extracted from marijuana plants grown at secret locations in the English countryside -- has been hit by a string of delays in Europe, where GW originally hoped to win approval in 2003.
Despite past disappointments, analysts are hopeful that this time GW will win a green light.
"Since the pivotal trial was designed largely by the regulators we feel there is relatively low risk of a rejection," said KBC analyst Paul Cuddon.
The spray contains two active cannabinoids, CBD and THC. The latter substance is responsible for the euphoria associated with smoking cannabis.
GW also said it was planning a mid-stage Phase II clinical trial with a new cannabinoid medicine for the treatment of dyslipidaemia, or raised levels of fat in the blood, in type II diabetes patients.
Other potential use for cannabinoid medicines could include treatments for cancer and schizophrenia.
"We're looking at developing other products from the plant which are not psychoactive ... The plant has 60 or 70 of them, many of which have a very interesting pharmacology," R&D Director Stephen Wright told Reuters.
(Editing by John Stonestreet)
Marijuana Use Can Help Treat Drug Abuse
It is conventional wisdom that any substance use during drug treatment leads to lower rates of success. But a new study in the American Journal on Addictions suggests that’s not always so.
The study looked at patients in treatment for opiate dependence using a drug called naltrexone – a treatment whose effectiveness, the researchers write, “has been severely limited by poor adherence.” As part of a study designed to test two different support protocols intended to help patients stay on naltrexone treatment, researchers also looked at use of other substances by means of regular urine tests conducted during clinic visits.
Contrary to conventional wisdom, patients with “intermittent” marijuana use (defined as between 1% and 79% of urine tests coming back positive) stayed on treatment for nearly four times as long as those who abstained completely. Treatment adherence by “consistent” marijuana users (80% or more positive urine tests) was almost identical to that of the abstainers.
The researchers note that the beneficial effect was most apparent early in treatment, that marijuana use was not only associated with staying in treatment longer but also with more consistent pill-taking, and that during the study the patients tended to maintain or even increase their marijuana use. This, they write, is “consistent with a process of self-medication. These findings are of interest because they suggest the hypothesis that moderate cannabis use may be exerting a beneficial pharmacological effect improving the tolerability of naltrexone in the early weeks after induction.”
Intermittent Marijuana Use Is Associated with Improved Retention in Naltrexone Treatment for Opiate-Dependence
Authors: Wilfrid Noel Raby a; Kenneth M. Carpenter a; Jami Rothenberg a; Adam C. Brooks a; Huiping Jiang a; Maria Sullivan a; Adam Bisaga a; Sandra Comer a; Edward V. Nunes a Affiliation: a Division on Substance Abuse, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York
DOI: 10.1080/10550490902927785
Publication Frequency: 6 issues per year
Published in: American Journal on Addictions, Volume 18, Issue 4 July 2009 , pages 301 - 308
Subject: Addiction & Treatment;
Formats available: HTML (English) : PDF (English)
Abstract
Naltrexone is a theoretically promising alternative to agonist substitution treatment for opioid dependence, but its effectiveness has been severely limited by poor adherence. This study examined, in an independent sample, a previously observed association between moderate cannabis use and improved retention in naltrexone treatment. Opioid dependent patients (N = 63), admitted for inpatient detoxification and induction onto oral naltrexone, and randomized into a six-month trial of intensive behavioral therapy (Behavioral Naltrexone Therapy) versus a control behavioral therapy (Compliance Enhancement), were classified into three levels of cannabis use during treatment based on biweekly urine toxicology: abstinent (0% cannabis positive urine samples); intermittent use (1% to 79% cannabis positive samples); and consistent use (80% or greater cannabis positive samples). Intermittent cannabis users showed superior retention in naltrexone treatment (median days retained = 133; mean = 112.8, SE = 17.5), compared to abstinent (median = 35; mean = 47.3, SE = 9.2) or consistent users (median = 35; mean = 68.3, SE = 14.1) (log rank = 12.2, df = 2, p = .002). The effect remained significant in a Cox model after adjustment for baseline level of heroin use and during treatment level of cocaine use. Intermittent cannabis use was also associated with greater adherence to naltrexone pill-taking. Treatment interacted with cannabis use level, such that intensive behavioral therapy appeared to moderate the adverse prognosis in the consistent cannabis use group. The association between moderate cannabis use and improved retention on naltrexone treatment was replicated. Experimental studies are needed to directly test the hypothesis that cannabinoid agonists exert a beneficial pharmacological effect on naltrexone maintenance and to understand the mechanism.
Synthetic [DELTA]-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (Dronabinol) Can Improve the Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Schwarcz, Glenn MD; Karajgi, Basawaraj MD; McCarthy, Richard MD, PhD
Abstract
We are reporting improvement of symptoms of schizophrenia in a small group of patients who received the cannabinoid agonist dronabinol (synthetic Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol). Before this report, cannabinoids had usually been associated with worsening of psychotic symptoms. In a heuristic, compassionate use study, we found that 4 of 6 treatment-refractory patients with severe chronic schizophrenia but who had a self-reported history of improving with marijuana abuse improved with dronabinol. This improvement seems to have been a reduction of core psychotic symptoms in 3 of the 4 responders and not just nonspecific calming. There were no clinically significant adverse effects. These results complement the recent finding that the cannabinoid blocker rimonabant does not improve schizophrenic symptoms and suggest that the role of cannabinoids in psychosis may be more complex than previously thought. They open a possible new role for cannabinoids in the treatment of schizophrenia.
Cannabis and the Brain: A User's Guide
by Paul Armentano
Preclinical data recently published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation demonstrating that cannabinoids may spur brain cell growth has reignited the international debate regarding the impact of marijuana on the brain. However, unlike previous pseudo-scientific campaigns that attempted to link pot smoking with a litany of cognitive abnormalities, modern research suggests what many cannabis enthusiasts have speculated all along: ganja is good for you.
Cannabinoids & Neurogenesis
"Study turns pot wisdom on its head," pronounced the Globe and Mail in October. News wires throughout North America and the world touted similar headlines -- all of which were met with a monumental silence from federal officials and law enforcement. Why all the fuss? Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon found that the administration of synthetic cannabinoids in rats stimulated the proliferation of newborn neurons (nerve cells) in the hippocampus region of the brain and significantly reduced measures of anxiety and depression-like behavior. The results shocked researchers -- who noted that almost all other so-called "drugs of abuse," including alcohol and tobacco, decrease neurogenesis in adults -- and left the "pot kills brain cells" crowd with a platter of long-overdue egg on their faces.
While it would be premature to extrapolate the study's findings to humans, at a minimum, the data reinforce the notion that cannabinoids are unusually non-toxic to the brain and that even long-term use of marijuana likely represents little risk to brain function. The findings also offer further evidence that cannabinoids can play a role in the alleviation of depression and anxiety, and that cannabis-based medicines may one day offer a safer alternative to conventional anti-depressant pharmaceuticals such as Paxil and Prozac.
(Reference: Cannabinoids promote embryonic and adult hippocampus neurogenesis and produce anxiolytic and depressant-like effects. The Journal of Clinical Investigation. 2005)
Cannabis & Neuroprotection
Not only has modern science refuted the notion that marijuana is neurotoxic, recent scientific discoveries have indicated that cannabinoids are, in fact, neuroprotective, particularly against alcohol-induced brain damage. In a recent preclinical study -- the irony of which is obvious to anyone who reads it -- researchers at the US National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH) reported that the administration of the non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) reduced ethanol-induced cell death in the brain by up to 60 percent. "This study provides the first demonstration of CBD as an in vivo neuroprotectant ... in preventing binge ethanol-induced brain injury," the study's authors wrote in the May 2005 issue of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. Alcohol poisoning is linked to hundreds of preventable deaths each year in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control, while cannabis cannot cause death by overdose.
Of course, many US neurologists have known about cannabis' neuroprotective prowess for years. NIMH scientists in 1998 first touted the ability of natural cannabinoids to stave off the brain-damaging effects of stroke and acute head trauma. Similar findings were then replicated by investigators in the Netherlands and Italy and, most recently, by a Japanese research in 2005. However, attempts to measure the potential neuroprotective effects of synthetic cannabinoid-derived medications in humans have so far been inconclusive.
(References: Comparison of cannabidiol, antioxidants and diuretics in reversing binge ethanol-induced neurotoxicity. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. 2005 | Cannabidiol prevents cerebral infarction. Stroke. 2005 | Post-ischemic treatment with cannabidiol prevents electroencephalographic flattening, hyperlocomotion and neuronal injury in gerbils. Neuroscience Letters. 2003 | Neuroprotection by Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol, the main active compound in marijuana, against ouabain-induced in vivo excitotoxicity. Journal of Neuroscience. 2001 | Cannabidiol and Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol are neuroprotective antioxidants. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 1998)
Cannabinoids & Glioma
Of all cancers, few are as aggressive and deadly as glioma. Glioma tumors quickly invade healthy brain tissue and are typically unresponsive to surgery and standard medical treatments. One agent they do respond to is cannabis.
Writing in the August 2005 issue of the Journal of Neurooncology, investigators at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute reported that the administration of THC on human glioblastoma multiforme cell lines decreased the proliferation of malignant cells and induced apoptosis (programmed cell death) more rapidly than did the administration of the synthetic cannabis receptor agonist, WIN-55,212-2. Researchers also noted that THC selectively targeted malignant cells while ignoring healthy ones in a more profound manner than the synthetic alternative. Patients diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme typically die within three months without therapy.
Previous research conducted in Italy has also demonstrated the capacity of CBD to inhibit the growth of glioma cells both in vitro (e.g., a petri dish) and in animals in a dose dependent manner. As a result, a Spanish research team is currently investigating whether the intracranial administration of cannabinoids can prolong the lives of patients diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer.
Most recently, a scientific analysis in the October issue of the journal Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry noted that, in addition to THC and CBD's brain cancer-fighting ability, studies have also shown cannabinoids to halt the progression of lung carcinoma, leukemia, skin carcinoma, colectoral cancer, prostate cancer and breast cancer.
(References: Cannabinoids selectively inhibit proliferation and induce cell death of cultured human glioblastoma multiforme cells. Journal of Neurooncology. 2005 | Cannabinoids and cancer. Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry. 2005 | Anti-tumor effects of cannabidiol, a non-psychotropic cannabinoid, on human glioma cell lines. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. 2003)
Cannabinoids & Neurodegeneration
Emerging evidence also indicates that cannabinoids may play a role in slowing the progression of certain neurodegenerative diseases, such as Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (a.k.a. Lou Gehrig's Disease). Recent animal studies have shown cannabinoids to delay disease progression and inhibit neurodegeneration in mouse models of ALS, Parkinson's, and MS. As a result, the Journal of Neurological Sciences recently pronounced, "There is accumulating evidence ... to support the hypothesis that the cannabinoid system can limit the neurodegenerative processes that drive progressive disease," and patient trials investigating whether the use of oral THC and cannabis extracts may slow the progression of MS are now underway in the United Kingdom.
(References: Cannabinoids and neuroprotection in CNS inflammatory disease. Journal of the Neurological Sciences. 2005. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: delayed disease progression in mice by treatment with a cannabinoid. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Other Motor Neuron Disorders. 2004 | Cannabinoids inhibit neurodegeneration in models of multiple sclerosis. Brain. 2003)
Cannabis & Cognition
But what about claims of cannabis' damaging effect of cognition? A review of the scientific literature indicates that rumors regarding the "stoner stupid" stereotype are unfounded. According to clinical trial data published this past spring in the American Journal of Addictions, cannabis use -- including heavy, long-term use of the drug -- has, at most, only a negligible impact on cognition and memory. Researchers at Harvard Medical School performed magnetic resonance imaging on the brains of 22 long-term cannabis users (reporting a mean of 20,100 lifetime episodes of smoking) and 26 controls (subjects with no history of cannabis use). Imaging displayed "no significant differences" between heavy cannabis smokers compared to controls, the study found.
Previous trials tell a similar tale. An October 2004 study published in the journal Psychological Medicine examining the potential long-term residual effects of cannabis on cognition in monozygotic male twins reported "an absence of marked long-term residual effects of marijuana use on cognitive abilities." A 2003 meta-analysis published in the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society also "failed to reveal a substantial, systematic effect of long-term, regular cannabis consumption on the neurocognitive functioning of users who were not acutely intoxicated," and a 2002 clinical trial published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal determined, "Marijuana does not have a long-term negative impact on global intelligence."
Finally, a 2001 study published in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry found that long-term cannabis smokers who abstained from the drug for one week "showed virtually no significant differences from control subjects (those who had smoked marijuana less than 50 times in their lives) on a battery of 10 neuropsychological tests." Investigators further added, "Former heavy users, who had consumed little or no cannabis in the three months before testing, [also] showed no significant differences from control subjects on any of these tests on any of the testing days."
(References: Lack of hippocampal volume change in long-term heavy cannabis users. American Journal of Addictions. 2005 | Neuropsychological consequences of regular marijuana use: a twin study. Psychological Medicine. 2004 | Non-acute (residual) neurocognitive effects of cannabis use: A meta-analytic study. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society. 2003 | Current and former marijuana use: preliminary findings of a longitudinal study of effects on IQ in young adults. Canadian Medical Association Journal. 2002 | Neuropsychological Performance in Long-term Cannabis Users. Archives of General Psychiatry. 2001)
http://www.jci.org/articles/view/25509/version/1
Cannabinoids promote embryonic and adult hippocampus neurogenesis and produce anxiolytic- and antidepressant-like effects
Wen Jiang1,2, Yun Zhang1, Lan Xiao1, Jamie Van Cleemput1, Shao-Ping Ji1, Guang Bai3 and Xia Zhang1
http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/314/2/780?maxtoshow=&HITS=&hits=&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=cannabidiol%2Bantioxidants%2Bdiuretics%2Bneurotoxicity&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT
Comparison of Cannabidiol, Antioxidants, and Diuretics in Reversing Binge Ethanol-Induced Neurotoxicity
Carol Hamelink1, Aidan Hampson1, David A. Wink, Lee E. Eiden, and Robert L. Eskay
http://stroke.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/36/5/1071
Cannabidiol Prevents Cerebral Infarction Via a Serotonergic 5-Hydroxytryptamine1A Receptor–Dependent Mechanism
Kenichi Mishima, PhD; Kazuhide Hayakawa; Kohji Abe, PhD; Tomoaki Ikeda, PhD, MD; Nobuaki Egashira, PhD; Katsunori Iwasaki, PhD Michihiro Fujiwara, PhD
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12850548?dopt=Citation
Post-ischemic treatment with cannabidiol prevents electroencephalographic flattening, hyperlocomotion and neuronal injury in gerbils.
Braida D, Pegorini S, Arcidiacono MV, Consalez GG, Croci L, Sala M.
http://www.jneurosci.org/cgi/content/full/21/17/6475
Neuroprotection by 9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, the Main Active Compound in Marijuana, against Ouabain-Induced In Vivo Excitotoxicity
M. van der Stelt1, W. B. Veldhuis2, 3, P. R. Bär3, G. A. Veldink1, J. F. G. Vliegenthart1, and K. Nicolay2
http://www.pnas.org/content/95/14/8268.full
(FULL TEXT at link)
Cannabidiol and (−)Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol are neuroprotective antioxidants
A. J. Hampson*,†, M. Grimaldi‡, J. Axelrod*, and D. Wink§
+
Author Affiliations
*Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Regulation, National Institutes of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD 20892; ‡Laboratory of Adaptive Systems, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, MD 20892; and §Radiology and Biology Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892
Contributed by Julius Axelrod
Next Section
Abstract
The neuroprotective actions of cannabidiol and other cannabinoids were examined in rat cortical neuron cultures exposed to toxic levels of the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate. Glutamate toxicity was reduced by both cannabidiol, a nonpsychoactive constituent of marijuana, and the psychotropic cannabinoid (−)Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Cannabinoids protected equally well against neurotoxicity mediated by N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors, 2-amino-3-(4-butyl-3-hydroxyisoxazol-5-yl)propionic acid receptors, or kainate receptors. N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor-induced toxicity has been shown to be calcium dependent; this study demonstrates that 2-amino-3-(4-butyl-3-hydroxyisoxazol-5-yl)propionic acid/kainate receptor-type neurotoxicity is also calcium-dependent, partly mediated by voltage sensitive calcium channels. The neuroprotection observed with cannabidiol and THC was unaffected by cannabinoid receptor antagonist, indicating it to be cannabinoid receptor independent. Previous studies have shown that glutamate toxicity may be prevented by antioxidants. Cannabidiol, THC and several synthetic cannabinoids all were demonstrated to be antioxidants by cyclic voltametry. Cannabidiol and THC also were shown to prevent hydroperoxide-induced oxidative damage as well as or better than other antioxidants in a chemical (Fenton reaction) system and neuronal cultures. Cannabidiol was more protective against glutamate neurotoxicity than either ascorbate or α-tocopherol, indicating it to be a potent antioxidant. These data also suggest that the naturally occurring, nonpsychotropic cannabinoid, cannabidiol, may be a potentially useful therapeutic agent for the treatment of oxidative neurological disorders such as cerebral ischemia.
Cannabinoid components of marijuana are known to exert behavioral and psychotropic effects but also to possess therapeutic properties including analgesia (1), ocular hypotension (2), and antiemesis (3). This report examines another potential therapeutic role for cannabinoids as neuroprotectants and describes their mechanism of action in rat cortical neuronal cultures.
During an ischemic episode, large quantities of the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate are released. This event causes neuronal death by over-stimulating N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors (NMDAr) and 2-amino-3-(4-butyl-3-hydroxyisoxazol-5-yl)propionic acid (AMPA) and kainate-type receptors and results in metabolic stress and accumulation of toxic levels of intracellular calcium (4). In vitro and in vivo studies (4, 5, 6) have demonstrated that such neurotoxicity can be reduced by antioxidants or antagonists to NMDAr and AMPA/kainate receptors. Antioxidants such as α-tocopherol (5, 6) are effective neuroprotectants because of their ability to reduce the toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) formed during ischemic metabolism. Cannabinoids like (−)Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and its psychoactive analogues also have been reported to be neuroprotective against glutamate toxicity in vitro (7). Cannabinoids have been suggested to prevent glutamate neurotoxicity by activating cannabinoid receptors (7, , which can reduce calcium influx through voltage sensitive calcium channels (8, 9). A synthetic cannabinoid (HU-211) also has been demonstrated to be neuroprotective even though it does not activate cannabinoid receptors. This compound is an atypical cannabinoid, however, in that it, unlike other cannabinoids, directly antagonizes NMDAr (10) and possesses some antioxidant properties (11). The present study examines classical cannabinoids as neuroprotectants in vitro but focuses on the nonpsychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol. Like THC, cannabidiol is a natural component of the marijuana plant, Cannabis sativa, although unlike THC, cannabidiol does not activate cannabinoid receptors and so is devoid of psychoactive effects (12). This study reports that cannabidiol and other cannabinoids such as THC are potent antioxidants that protect neurons from glutamate-induced death without cannabinoid receptor activation.
Return to Data & Research Compilations
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 8 guests