“Vismodegib is a hedgehog inhibitor drug indicated for metastatic or locally advanced basal cell carcinoma (BCC) that is not fit for surgery or radiation therapy. One of the most common side effects of vismodegib is muscle cramps which can cause a decrease in quality of life (QoL) and treatment discontinuation. Cannabis is known to improve spasticity (including muscle cramps) in multiple sclerosis patients.” http://www.jpsmjournal.com/article/S0885-3924(18)30070-8/fulltext
Category Archives: THC (Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol)
Cannabinoids prevent depressive-like symptoms and alterations in BDNF expression in a rat model of PTSD.
“Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition highly comorbid with depression. The endocannabinoid (eCB) system and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) are suggestively involved in both disorders.
We examined whether cannabinoids can prevent the long-term depressive-like symptoms induced by exposure to the shock and situational reminders (SRs) model of PTSD. The CB1/2 receptor agonist WIN55,212-2 (0.5 mg/kg; i.p.), the fatty acid hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitor URB597 (0.3 mg/kg, i.p.) or vehicle were administered 2 h after severe shock.
Cannabinoids prevented the shock/SRs-induced alterations in social recognition memory, locomotion, passive coping, anxiety-like behavior, anhedonia, fear retrieval, fear extinction and startle response as well as the decrease in BDNF levels in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (PFC). Furthermore, significant correlations were found between depressive-like behaviors and BDNF levels in the brain.
The findings suggest that cannabinoids may prevent both depressive- and PTSD-like symptoms following exposure to severe stress and that alterations in BDNF levels in the brains’ fear circuit are involved in these effects.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29458190
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027858461731000X
Role of the Endocannabinoid System in the Neurobiology of Suicide
“In the past decade, remarkable advances have been made in cannabinoid (CB) research. The brain endocannabinoid (eCB) system modulates several neurobiological processes and its dysfunction is suggested to be involved in the pathophysiology of mood and drug use disorders. The CB1 receptor–mediated signaling, in particular, has been shown to play a critical role in the neural circuitry that mediates mood, motivation, and emotional behaviors. This chapter presents the data pertaining to the involvement of the eCB system in depression, suicide, and alcohol addiction. It appears that the eCB system might have a critical role in the regulation of mood and emotional responses that are impaired in patients with depression and suicidal behavior. The data provided in this chapter support the notion that the eCB system might be an additional target for the development of a drug against alcohol use, depression, and suicidal behavior. Among therapeutic agents, antidepressants are the most widely used drugs for the treatment of depression-related disorders.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23035286 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK107200/ “Antidepressant-like effect of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol and other cannabinoids isolated from cannabis sativa L. The antidepressant action of cannabis as well as the interaction between antidepressants and the endocannabinoid system has been reported. Results of this study show that Δ9-THC and other cannabinoids exert anti-depressant-like actions, and thus may contribute to the overall mood-elevating properties of cannabis.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2866040/]]>
The Cannabinoids Δ8THC, CBD, and HU-308 Act via Distinct Receptors to Reduce Corneal Pain and Inflammation
“Corneal injury can result in dysfunction of corneal nociceptive signaling and corneal sensitization. Activation of the endocannabinoid system has been reported to be analgesic and anti-inflammatory. The purpose of this research was to investigate the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of cannabinoids with reported actions at cannabinoid 1 (CB1R) and cannabinoid 2 (CB2R) receptors and/or noncannabinoid receptors in an experimental model of corneal hyperalgesia. Topical cannabinoids reduce corneal hyperalgesia and inflammation. The antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects of Δ8THC are mediated primarily via CB1R, whereas that of the cannabinoids CBD and HU-308, involve activation of 5-HT1A receptors and CB2Rs, respectively. Cannabinoids could be a novel clinical therapy for corneal pain and inflammation resulting from ocular surface injury.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29450258 http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/can.2017.0041]]>
The Use of Cannabis and Cannabinoids in Treating Symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis: a Systematic Review of Reviews.
“Pharmaceutical cannabinoids such as nabiximols, nabilone and dronabinol, and plant-based cannabinoids have been investigated for their therapeutic potential in treating multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms.
This review of reviews aimed to synthesise findings from high quality systematic reviews that examined the safety and effectiveness of cannabinoids in multiple sclerosis. We examined the outcomes of disability and disability progression, pain, spasticity, bladder function, tremor/ataxia, quality of life and adverse effects.
We identified 11 eligible systematic reviews providing data from 32 studies, including 10 moderate to high quality RCTs. Five reviews concluded that there was sufficient evidence that cannabinoids may be effective for symptoms of pain and/or spasticity in MS. Few reviews reported conclusions for other symptoms. Recent high quality reviews find cannabinoids may have modest effects in MS for pain or spasticity. Future research should include studies with non-cannabinoid comparators; this is an important gap in the evidence.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29442178 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11910-018-0814-x]]>Cannabinoid-induced cell death in endometrial cancer cells: involvement of TRPV1 receptors in apoptosis.
“Among a variety of phytocannabinoids, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are the most promising therapeutic compounds. Besides the well-known palliative effects in cancer patients, cannabinoids have been shown to inhibit in vitro growth of tumor cells.
Likewise, the major endocannabinoids (eCBs), anandamide (AEA) and 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG), induce tumor cell death.
The purpose of the present study was to characterize cannabinoid elements and evaluate the effect of cannabinoids in endometrial cancer cell viability.
These data indicate that cannabinoids modulate endometrial cancer cell death.
Selective targeting of TPRV1 by AEA, CBD, or other stable analogues may be an attractive research area for the treatment of estrogen-dependent endometrial carcinoma.
Our data further support the evaluation of CBD and CBD-rich extracts for the potential treatment of endometrial cancer, particularly, that has become non-responsive to common therapies.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29441458
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs13105-018-0611-7
