Category Archives: THC (Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol)

Antinociceptive and Immune Effects of Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol or Cannabidiol in Male Versus Female Rats with Persistent Inflammatory Pain.

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Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics: 373 (1)

“Chronic pain is the most common reason reported for using medical cannabis.

The goal of this research was to determine if the two primary phytocannabinoids, THC and CBD, are effective treatments for persistent inflammatory pain.

These results suggest that THC may be more beneficial than CBD for reducing inflammatory pain, in that THC maintains its efficacy with short-term treatment in both sexes, and does not induce immune activation.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: CBDs and THCs pain-relieving effects are examined in male and female rats with persistent inflammatory pain to determine if individual phytocannabinoids could be a viable treatment for men and women with chronic inflammatory pain. Additionally, sex differences in the immune response to an adjuvant and to THC and CBD are characterized to provided preliminary insight into immune-related effects of cannabinoid-based therapy for pain.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32179573

http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/content/early/2020/03/16/jpet.119.263319

An overview of cannabis based treatment in Crohn’s disease.

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 Publication Cover“Cannabis use among inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients is common. There are many studies of various laboratory models demonstrating the anti-inflammatory effect of cannabis, but their translation to human disease is still lacking.

Areas covered: The cannabis plant contains many cannabinoids, that activate the endocannabinoid system. The two most abundant phytocannabinoids are the psychoactive Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and the (mostly) anti-inflammatory cannabidiol (CBD). Approximately 15% of IBD patients use cannabis to ameliorate disease symptoms. Unfortunately, so far there are only three small placebo controlled study regarding the use of cannabis in active Crohns disease, combining altogether 93 subjects. Two of the studies showed significant clinical improvement but no improvement in markers of inflammation.

Expert opinion: Cannabis seems to have a therapeutic potential in IBD. This potential must not be neglected; however, cannabis research is still at a very early stage. The complexity of the plant and the diversity of different cannabis chemovars create an inherent difficulty in cannabis research. We need more studies investigating the effect of the various cannabis compounds. These effects can then be investigated in randomized placebo controlled clinical trials to fully explore the potential of cannabis treatment in IBD.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32149543

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17474124.2020.1740590?journalCode=ierh20

High expectations: The landscape of clinical trials of medical marijuana in oncology.

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Complementary Therapies in Medicine“Given the infancy and evolving complexity of medicinal marijuana, an evolving political landscape, and the growing frequency of its use in cancer care, it is important for oncologists to be actively engaged in developing and successfully implementing clinical trials focusing on medical marijuana.

The purpose of this study was to analyze and evaluate trends in clinical trials focused on medical marijuana in oncology.

CONCLUSION:

Our results indicate that across oncology, there is growing interest in clinical research in the use of medical marijuana.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32147080

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0965229919309306?via%3Dihub

What Do You Know About Maryjane? A Systematic Review of the Current Data on the THC:CBD Ratio.

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Publication Cover“Ratios of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) impact metabolism and therapeutic effects of cannabis.

The medical and scientific communities have not drawn substantive conclusions nor thoroughly explored THC:CBD ratios for “best practice” treatment of different disease processes and their sequelae.

While there is evidence that cannabis provides medical benefits, research is lacking on standardization of medical cannabis use in modern medical practices.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32124675

 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10826084.2020.1731547?journalCode=isum20

The effects of cannabinoids on glioblastoma growth: A systematic review with meta-analysis of animal model studies.

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European Journal of Pharmacology“Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most frequent and aggressive malignant brain tumour, with a poor prognosis despite available surgical and radio-chemotherapy, rising the necessity for searching alternative therapies. Several preclinical studies evaluating the efficacy of cannabinoids in animal models of GBM have been described, but the diversity of experimental conditions and of outcomes hindered definitive conclusions about cannabinoids efficacy.

A search in different databases (Pubmed, Web of Science, Scopus and SciELO) was conducted during June 2019 to systematically identify publications evaluating the effects of cannabinoids in murine xenografts models of GBM. The tumour volume and number of animals were extracted, being a random effects meta-analysis of these results performed to estimate the efficacy of cannabinoids. The impact of different experimental factors and publication bias on the efficacy of cannabinoids was also assessed. Nine publications, which satisfied the inclusion criteria, were identified and subdivided in 22 studies involving 301 animals.

Overall, cannabinoid therapy reduced the fold of increase in tumour volume in animal models of GBM, when compared with untreated controls. The overall weighted standardized difference in means (WSDM) for the effect of cannabinoids was -1.399 (95% CI: -1.900 to -0.898; P-value<0.0001). Furthermore, treatment efficacy was observed for different types of cannabinoids, alone or in combination, and for different treatment durations.

Cannabinoid therapy was still effective after correcting for publication bias. The results indicate that cannabinoids reduce the tumour growth in animal models of GBM, even after accounting for publication bias.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32145324

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0014299920301473?via%3Dihub

Identification and Characterization of Cannabimovone, a Cannabinoid from Cannabis sativa, as a Novel PPARγ Agonist via a Combined Computational and Functional Study.

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 molecules-logo“Phytocannabinoids (pCBs) are a large family of meroterpenoids isolated from the plant Cannabis sativa. Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are the best investigated phytocannabinoids due to their relative abundance and interesting bioactivity profiles. In addition to various targets, THC and CBD are also well-known agonists of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ), a nuclear receptor involved in energy homeostasis and lipid metabolism. In the search of new pCBs potentially acting as PPARγ agonists, we identified cannabimovone (CBM), a structurally unique abeo-menthane pCB, as a novel PPARγ modulator via a combined computational and experimental approach. The ability of CBM to act as dual PPARγ/α agonist was also evaluated. Computational studies suggested a different binding mode toward the two isoforms, with the compound able to recapitulate the pattern of H-bonds of a canonical agonist only in the case of PPARγ. Luciferase assays confirmed the computational results, showing a selective activation of PPARγ by CBM in the low micromolar range. CBM promoted the expression of PPARγ target genes regulating the adipocyte differentiation and prevented palmitate-induced insulin signaling impairment. Altogether, these results candidate CBM as a novel bioactive compound potentially useful for the treatment of insulin resistance-related disorders.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32138197

https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/25/5/1119

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Cannabinoid Oromucosal Spray Use for the Management of Spasticity in Subjects with Multiple Sclerosis.

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 SpringerLink“Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a highly symptomatic disease, with a wide range of disabilities affecting many bodily functions, even in younger persons with a short disease history.

The availability of a cannabinoid oromucosal spray (Sativex) for the management of treatment-resistant MS spasticity has provided a new opportunity for many patients.

OBJECTIVE:

Our study aimed to assess the cost effectiveness of Sativex in Italian patients with treatment-resistant MS spasticity. The analysis was based on the real-world data of a large registry of Italian patients.

CONCLUSION:

The use of Sativex could improve the quality of life of patients with a reasonable incremental cost resulting as a cost-effective option for patients with MS-resistant spasticity. These results could help clinicians and decision makers to develop improved management strategies for spasticity in patients with MS, optimizing the use of available resources.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32130684

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs40261-020-00895-6

Ensuring access to safe, effective, and affordable cannabis‐based medicines

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British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology“Over the past decade, patients, families, and medical cannabis advocates have campaigned in many countries to allow patients to use cannabis preparations to treat the symptoms of serious illnesses that have not responded to conventional treatment.

Ideally, any medical use of a cannabinoid would involve practitioners prescribing an approved medicine produced to standards of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), the safety and effectiveness of which had been assessed in clinical trials. The prescriber would be fully acquainted with the patient’s medical history and well‐informed about the safety and efficacy of cannabinoid medicines and know the most appropriate formulations and dosages to use and how they should be used in combination with other medicines being used to treat the patient’s condition. Current medical use of cannabinoids falls short of these expectations and regulations.

There is reasonable evidence that some cannabinoids are superior to placebo in reducing symptoms of some medical conditions.

There are no short cuts in making quality‐controlled cannabis‐based medicines available to patients in ways that ensure that they are used safely and effectively. In the absence of industry interest in funding clinical trials, governments need to fund large, well‐designed clinical and clinical pharmacological studies that will enable cannabinoids to play a more evidence‐based role in modern clinical practice. In the meantime, the clinical pharmacology field needs to share high‐quality data on the safety, efficacy, and pharmacology of medical cannabinoids as it becomes available. This should be presented in ways that permit the information to be regularly updated and provide clinically useful guidance on how these medicines should be used.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32128867

https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/bcp.14242

Adding medical cannabis to standard analgesic treatment for fibromyalgia: a prospective observational study.

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Image result for Clin Exp Rheumatol. “To assess any clinical improvement attributable to the addition of medical cannabis treatment (MCT) to the stable (>3 months) standard analgesic treatment of fibromyalgia (FM) patients, the retention rate and any changes in the concomitant analgesic treatment over a period of six months.

METHODS:

The study involved 102 consecutive FM patients with VAS scores ≥4 despite standard analgesic treatment. Patients were prescribed two oil-diluted cannabis extracts: Bedrocan (22% THC, <1% CBD), and Bediol (6.3% THC, 8% CBD). FM severity was periodically assessed using Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQR), Fibromyalgia Assessment Scale (FAS), FACIT-Fatigue score, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and Zung Depression and Anxiety Scales. During the study, patients were allowed to reduce or stop their concomitant analgesic therapy.

RESULTS:

The 6-month retention rate was 64%. A significant improvement in the PSQI and FIQR was observed in respectively 44% and 33% of patients. 50% showed a moderate improvement in the anxiety and depression scales. Multiple regression analysis showed a correlation between the body mass index (BMI) and FIQR improvement (p=0.017). Concomitant analgesic treatment was reduced or suspended in 47% of the patients. One-third experienced mild adverse events, which did not cause any significant treatment modifications.

CONCLUSIONS:

This observational study shows that adjunctive MCT offers a possible clinical advantage in FM patients, especially in those with sleep dysfunctions. The clinical improvement inversely correlated with BMI. The retention rate and changes in concomitant analgesic therapy reflect MCT efficacy of the improved quality of life of patients. Further studies are needed to confirm these data, identify MCT-responsive sub-groups of FM patients, and establish the most appropriate posology and duration of the therapy.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32116208

The implications of late-life cannabis use on brain health: A mapping review and implications for future research.

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Ageing Research Reviews“While medical and recreational cannabis use is becoming more frequent among older adults, the neurocognitive consequences of cannabis use in this age group are unclear. The aim of this literature review was to synthesize and evaluate the current knowledge on the association of cannabis use during older-adulthood with cognitive function and brain aging.

We reviewed the literature from old animal models and human studies while focusing on the link of middle- and old-age use of cannabis with cognition. The report highlights the gap in knowledge on cannabis use in late-life and cognitive health, and discusses the limited findings in the context of substantial changes in attitudes and policies. Furthermore, we outline possible theoretical mechanisms and propose recommendations for future research.

The limited evidence on this important topic suggests that use in older ages may not be linked with poorer cognitive performance, thus detrimental effects of early-life cannabis use may not translate to use in older ages. Rather, use in old ages may be associated with improved brain health, in accordance with the known neuroprotective properties of several cannabinoids.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32109605

“Cannabis use in older ages may be associated with improved brain health.”

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1568163719303204?via%3Dihub