Tetrahydrocannabinol Modulates in Vitro Maturation of Oocytes and Improves the Blastocyst Rates after in Vitro Fertilization.

 

Image result for Cellular Physiology & Biochemistry“Among the assisted reproductive techniques, the in vitro maturation of oocytes (IVM) is less developed than other techniques, but its implementation would entail a qualitative advance.

This technique consists in the extraction of immature oocytes from antral ovarian follicles with the patient under low hormone stimulation or without hormone to mature exogenously in culture media supplemented with different molecules to promote maturation.

In this sense, we are interested in the role that cannabinoids could have as IVM promoters because cannabinoid’s molecular pathway is similar to the one by which oocyte’s meiosis resumption is activated.

With the intention of advancing in the possible use of cannabinoids as supplements for the media for in vitro maturation of oocytes, we intend to deepen the study of the function of the phytocannabinoid Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in the IVM process.

RESULTS:

This study confirms that the incubation of oocytes with THC during IVM accelerated some events of that process like the phosphorylation pattern of ERK and AKT and was able to increase the blastocyst rate in response to IVF. Moreover, it seems that both CB1 and CB2 are necessary to maintain a healthy oocyte maturation.

CONCLUSION:

Our data suggest that THC may be useful IVM supplements in clinic as is more feasible and reliable than any synthetic cannabinoid.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31436397

https://www.cellphysiolbiochem.com/Articles/000149/

The effectiveness of self-directed medical cannabis treatment for pain

Complementary Therapies in Medicine“The prior medical literature offers little guidance as to how pain relief and side effect manifestation may vary across commonly used and commercially available cannabis product types. We used the largest dataset in the United States of real-time responses to and side effect reporting from patient-directed cannabis consumption sessions for the treatment of pain under naturalistic conditions in order to identify how cannabis affects momentary pain intensity levels and which product characteristics are the best predictors of therapeutic pain relief.

Between 06/06/2016 and 10/24/2018, 2987 people used the ReleafApp to record 20,513 cannabis administration measuring cannabis’ effects on momentary pain intensity levels across five pain categories: musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal, nerve, headache-related, or non-specified pain. The average pain reduction was –3.10 points on a 0–10 visual analogue scale (SD = 2.16, d = 1.55, p < .001).

Whole Cannabis flower was associated with greater pain relief than were other types of products, and higher tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels were the strongest predictors of analgesia and side effects prevalence across the five pain categories. In contrast, cannabidiol (CBD) levels generally were not associated with pain relief except for a negative association between CBD and relief from gastrointestinal and non-specified pain.

These findings suggest benefits from patient-directed, cannabis therapy as a mid-level analgesic treatment; however, effectiveness and side effect manifestation vary with the characteristics of the product used.

The results suggest that Cannabis flower with moderate to high levels of tetrahydrocannabinol is an effective mid-level analgesic.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31519268

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0965229919308040

“UNM study confirms cannabis flower is an effective mid-level analgesic medication for pain treatment. Cannabis likely has numerous constituents that possess analgesic properties beyond THC, including terpenes and flavonoids, which likely act synergistically for people that use whole dried cannabis flower, Cannabis offers the average patient an effective alternative to using opioids for general use in the treatment of pain with very minimal negative side effects for most people.”  https://news.unm.edu/news/unm-study-confirms-cannabis-flower-is-an-effective-mid-level-analgesic-medication-for-pain-treatment

Cannabidiol and the Remainder of the Plant Extract Modulate the Effects of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol on Fear Memory Reconsolidation.

Image result for frontiers in behavioral neuroscience “Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, a CB1 receptor agonist) and Cannabidiol (CBD, a non-competitive antagonist of endogenous CB1 and CB2 ligands) are two primary components of Cannabis species, and may modulate fear learning in mammals.

The CB1 receptor is widely distributed throughout the cortex and some limbic regions typically associated with fear learning. Humans with posttraumatic disorder (PTSD) have widespread upregulation of CB1 receptor density and reduced availability of endogenous cannabinoid anandamide, suggesting a role for the endocannabinoid system in PTSD.

Pharmacological blockade of memory reconsolidation following recall of a conditioned response modulates the expression of learned fear and may represent a viable target for the development of new treatments for PTSD.

In this study, we focused on assessing the impact of the key compounds of the marijuana plant both singly and, more importantly, in concert on attenuation of learned fear. Specifically, we assessed the impact of THC, CBD, and/or the remaining plant materials (post-extraction; background material), on reconsolidation of learned fear.

Results: CBD alone, but not THC alone, significantly attenuated fear memory reconsolidation when administered immediately after recall. The effect persisted for at least 7 days. A combination of CBD and THC also attenuated the fear response. Plant BM also significantly attenuated reconsolidation of learned fear both on its own and in combination with THC and CBD. Finally, THC attenuated reconsolidation of learned fear only when co-administered with CBD or plant BM.

Conclusion: CBD may provide a novel treatment strategy for targeting fear-memories. Furthermore, plant BM also significantly attenuated the fear response. However, whereas THC alone had no significant effects, its effects were modulated by the addition of other compounds. Future research should investigate some of the other components present in the plant BM (such as terpenes) for their effects alone, or in combination with isolated pure cannabinoids, on fear learning.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31417379

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00174/full

Emerging role of cannabinoids and synthetic cannabinoid receptor 1/cannabinoid receptor 2 receptor agonists in cancer treatment and chemotherapy-associated cancer management

Journal of Cancer Research and Therapeutics“Cannabis was extensively utilized for its medicinal properties till the 19th century. A steep decline in its medicinal usage was observed later due to its emergence as an illegal recreational drug.

Advances in technology and scientific findings led to the discovery of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive compound of cannabis, that further led to the discovery of endogenous cannabinoids system consisting of G-protein-coupled receptors – cannabinoid receptor 1 and cannabinoid receptor 2 along with their ligands, mainly anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol.  Endocannabinoid (EC) is shown to be a modulator not only for physiological functions but also for the immune system, endocrine network, and central nervous system.

Medicinal research and meta-data analysis over the last few decades have shown a significant potential for both THC and cannabidiol (CBD) to exert palliative effects. People suffering from many forms of advanced stages of cancers undergo chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting followed by severe and chronic neuropathic pain and weight loss.

THC and CBD exhibit effective analgesic, anxiolytic, and appetite-stimulating effect on patients suffering from cancer. Drugs currently available in the market to treat such chemotherapy-induced cancer-related ailments are Sativex (GW Pharmaceutical), Dronabinol (Unimed Pharmaceuticals), and Nabilone (Valeant Pharmaceuticals).

Apart from exerting palliative effects, THC also shows promising role in the treatment of cancer growth, neurodegenerative diseases (multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease), and alcohol addiction and hence should be exploited for potential benefits.

The current review discusses the nature and role of CB receptors, specific applications of cannabinoids, and major studies that have assessed the role of cannabinoids in cancer management.

Specific targeting of cannabinoid receptors can be used to manage severe side effects during chemotherapy, palliative care, and overall cancer management. Furthermore, research evidences on cannabinoids have suggested tumor inhibiting and suppressing properties which warrant reconsidering legality of the substance.

Studies on CB1 and CB2 receptors, in case of cancers, have demonstrated the psychoactive constituents of cannabinoids to be potent against tumor growth.

Interestingly, studies have also shown that activation of CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors by their respective synthetic agonists tends to limit human cancer cell growth, suggesting the role of the endocannabinoid system as a novel target for treatment of cancers.

Further explorations are required to exploit cannabinoids for an effective cancer management.”

http://www.cancerjournal.net/preprintarticle.asp?id=263538

“Could Cannabis Kill Cancer Cells? A New Study Looks Promising”  https://www.portlandmercury.com/blogtown/2019/08/15/26977361/could-cannabis-kill-cancer-cells-a-new-study-looks-promising

“Study Reviews How Marijuana Compounds Inhibit Tumor Growth And Kill Cancer Cells” https://www.marijuanamoment.net/study-reviews-how-marijuana-compounds-inhibit-tumor-growth-and-kill-cancer-cells/

Cannabinoids and inflammation: Implications for People Living with HIV.

Image result for wolters kluwer “Thanks to the success of modern antiretroviral therapy (ART), people living with HIV (PLWH) have life expectancies which approach that of persons in the general population. However, despite the ability of ART to suppress viral replication, PLWH have high levels of chronic systemic inflammation which drives the development of comorbidities such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and non-AIDS associated malignancies.

Historically, cannabis has played an important role in alleviating many symptoms experienced by persons with advanced HIV infection in the pre-ART era and continues to be used by many PLWH in the ART era, though for different reasons.

Δ-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ-THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are the phytocannabinoids which have received most attention for their medicinal properties. Due to their ability to suppress lymphocyte proliferation and inflammatory cytokine production, there is interest in examining their therapeutic potential as immunomodulators.

CB2 receptor activation has been shown in vitro to reduce CD4 T-cell infection by CXCR4-tropic HIV and to reduce HIV replication.

Studies involving SIV-infected macaques have shown that Δ-THC can reduce morbidity and mortality and has favourable effects on the gut mucosal immunity. Furthermore, ΔTHC administration was associated with reduced lymph node fibrosis and diminished levels of SIV proviral DNA in spleens of rhesus macaques compared with placebo-treated macaques.

In humans, cannabis use does not induce a reduction in peripheral CD4 T-cell count or loss of HIV virological control in cross-sectional studies. Rather, cannabis use in ART-treated PLWH was associated with decreased levels of T-cell activation, inflammatory monocytes and pro-inflammatory cytokines secretion, all of which are related to HIV disease progression and co-morbidities.

Randomized clinical trials should provide further insights into the ability of cannabis and cannabinoid-based medicines to attenuate HIV-associated inflammation. In turn, these findings may provide a novel means to reduce morbidity and mortality in PLWH as adjunctive agents to ART.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31408029

https://insights.ovid.com/crossref?an=00002030-900000000-96855

Bones and Joints: The Effects of Cannabinoids on the Skeleton.

Image result for j clin endocrinol metab“This paper reviews the endocannabinoid system and focuses on the role of endocannabinoids in bone metabolism and their potential use in the management of conditions associated with bone loss.

CONTEXT:

The endocannabinoid system uses tissue-specific lipid ligands and G protein-coupled transmembrane receptors to regulate neurological, metabolic, and immune responses. Recent studies demonstrate that the endocannabinoid system influences bone metabolism. With the increasing use of endocannabinoid mimetics, e.g. tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), endocannabinoids’ involvement in bone growth and remodeling has become clinically relevant.

EVIDENCE ACQUISITION:

This literature review is based upon a search of Pubmed and Google Scholar databases, as of June 2019, for all English-language publications relating to cannabinoids and bone. We evaluated retrieved articles for relevance, experimental design, data acquisition, statistical analysis, and conclusions.

EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS:

Preclinical studies establish a role for endocannabinoids in bone metabolism. These studies yield complex and often contradictory results attributed to differences in the specific experimental model examined. Studies using human cells or subjects are limited.

CONCLUSIONS:

In vitro and animal models document that endocannabinoids participate in bone biology. The relevance of these observations to humans is not clear. The increasing chronic use of medical and recreational cannabis underscores the need to better understand the role of endocannabinoids in human bone metabolism. Moreover, it is important to evaluate the role of endocannabinoids as a therapeutic target to prevent and treat disorders associated with bone loss.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31393556

“[The endocannabinoid system and bone].”  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27734700

“Joint problems arising from lack of repair mechanisms: can cannabinoids help?”  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29574720

“Cannabinoids and bone regeneration.”  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30702341

“Cannabinoids and the skeleton: from marijuana to reversal of bone loss.”  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19634029

Application device for THC:CBD oromucosal spray in the management of resistant spasticity: pre-production testing.

 Publication Cover“Patients with multiple sclerosis spasticity (MSS) and upper limb/hand impairment who are taking 9-delta-tetrahydrocannabinol:cannabidiol (THC:CBD) oromucosal spray (Sativex®) may have difficulty self-administering their medication, possibly limiting adherence and treatment effectiveness.

A Class I EU device is available to support administration of THC:CBD spray. Pre-production testing was undertaken in a patient sample.

Results: Fifteen patients participated. Mean treatment time with THC:CBD spray was 4 (range: 0.1-6.1) years. 87% of participants ‘always’, ‘often’ or ‘sometimes’ had hand impairment, and 53% reported difficulty administering THC:CBD spray. Participants reported better application using the device (73%), with less strength required (54%). Most participants (93%) considered the instruction leaflet to be clear and many (66%) expressed interest in using the device. Most HCPs (93%) did not foresee any difficulties in use of the device.

Conclusion: The proposed adherence device was useful to address self-application difficulties with THC:CBD spray in our sample. Providing the device to MSS patients with upper limb/hand spasticity impairment may restore autonomy and support adherence to THC:CBD spray.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31393179

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17434440.2019.1653182?journalCode=ierd20

Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol suppresses monocyte-mediated astrocyte production of MCP-1 and IL-6 in a TLR7-stimulated human co-culture.

Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics“Cannabis is widely used in the United States with an estimated prevalence of 9.5%. Certain cannabinoids in Cannabis sativa, in particular, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), possess immune modulating and anti-inflammatory activity. Depending on the context, the anti-inflammatory activity of cannabinoids may be beneficial, such as in treating inflammatory diseases, or detrimental to normal immune defense against pathogens. The potential beneficial impact of cannabinoids on chronic neuroinflammation has gained recent attention. Monocyte migration to the brain has been implicated as a key event in chronic neuroinflammation and in the etiology of central nervous system diseases including viral infection (e.g., HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder). In the brain, monocytes can contribute to neuroinflammation through interactions with astrocytes, including inducing astrocyte secretion of cytokines and chemokines. In a human co-culture system, monocyte-derived IL-1β due to toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7)-activation, has been identified to promote astrocyte production of MCP-1 and IL-6. THC treatment of TLR7-stimulated co-culture suppressed monocyte secretion of IL-1β resulting in decreased astrocyte production of MCP-1 and IL-6. Furthermore, THC displayed direct inhibition of monocytes, as TLR7-stimulated monocyte monocultures treated with THC also showed suppressed IL-1β production. The cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2) agonist, JWH-015, impaired monocyte IL-1β production similar to that of THC, suggesting THC is, in part, acting through CB2. THC also suppressed key elements of the IL-1β production pathway, including IL1B mRNA levels and caspase-1 activity. Collectively, this study demonstrates that the anti-inflammatory properties of THC suppress TLR7-induced monocyte secretion of IL-1β, through CB2, which results in decreased astrocyte secretion of MCP-1 and IL-6.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: As cannabis use is highly prevalent in the United States and has putative anti-inflammatory properties, it is important to investigate the effect of cannabinoids on immune cell function. Furthermore, cannabinoids have garnered particular interest due to their potential beneficial effects on attenuating viral-induced chronic neuroinflammation. This study utilized a primary human co-culture system to demonstrate that the major psychotropic cannabinoid in cannabis, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and a cannabinoid receptor-2 (CB2) selective agonist, suppress specific monocyte-mediated astrocyte inflammatory responses. In the context of viral-induced chronic neuroinflammation, the findings presented here suggest that cannabinoids via CB2 ligation may have beneficial anti-inflammatory effects.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31383729

http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/content/early/2019/08/05/jpet.119.260661

Cannabichromene is a cannabinoid CB2 receptor agonist.

British Journal of Pharmacology banner“Cannabichromene (CBC) is one of the most abundant phytocannabinoids in Cannabis spp. It has modest anti-nociceptive and anti-inflammatory effects and potentiates some effects of Δ9 – tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in vivo. How CBC exerts these effects is poorly defined and there is little information about its efficacy at cannabinoid receptors. We sought to determine the functional activity of CBC at CB1 and CB2 receptors.

KEY RESULTS:

CBC activated CB2 but not CB1 receptors to produce a hyperpolarization of AtT20 cells. This activation was inhibited by a CB2 antagonist AM630, and sensitive to pertussis toxin. Application of CBC reduced activation of CB2 receptors (but not CB1 receptors) by subsequent co-application of CP55,940, an efficacious CB1 and CB2 agonist. Continuous CBC application induced loss of cell surface CB2 receptors and desensitisation of the CB2-induced hyperpolarization.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS:

CBC is a selective CB2 receptor agonist displaying higher efficacy than THC in hyperpolarising AtT20 cells. CBC can also recruit CB2 receptor regulatory mechanisms. CBC may contribute to the potential therapeutic effectiveness of some cannabis preparations, potentially through CB2-mediated modulation of inflammation.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31368508

https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/bph.14815

Combination of cannabinoids, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), mitigates experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) by altering the gut microbiome.

Brain, Behavior, and Immunity“Currently, a combination of marijuana cannabinoids including delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) is used as a drug to treat muscle spasticity in patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

Because these cannabinoids can also suppress inflammation, it is unclear whether such patients benefit from suppression of neuroinflammation and if so, what is the mechanism through which cannabinoids act.

In the currently study, we used a murine model of MS, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), to study the role of gut microbiota in the attenuation of clinical signs of paralysis and inflammation caused by cannabinoids.

THC+CBD treatment attenuated EAE and caused significant decrease in inflammatory cytokines such as IL-17 and IFN-γ while promoting the induction of anti-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-10 and TGF-β. Use of 16S rRNA sequencing on bacterial DNA extracted from the gut revealed that EAE mice showed high abundance of mucin degrading bacterial species, such as Akkermansia muciniphila (A.muc), which was significantly reduced after THC+CBD treatment.

Fecal Material Transfer (FMT) experiments confirmed that THC+CBD-mediated changes in the microbiome play a critical role in attenuating EAE. In silico computational metabolomics revealed that LPS biosynthesis, a key component in gram-negative bacteria such as A.muc, was found to be elevated in EAE mice which was confirmed by demonstrating higher levels of LPS in the brain, while treatment with THC+CBD reversed this trend. EAE mice treated with THC+CBD also had significantly higher levels of short chain fatty acids such as butyric, isovaleric, and valeric acids compared to naïve or disease controls.

Collectively, our data suggest that cannabinoids may attenuate EAE and suppress neuroinflammation by preventing microbial dysbiosis seen during EAE and promoting healthy gut microbiota.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31356922

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889159119306476?via%3Dihub