Novel Anti-inflammatory and Vasodilatory ω-3 Endocannabinoid Epoxide Regioisomers.

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 “Accumulating evidence suggests that diets rich in ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) offer protection against vascular inflammation, neuroinflammation, hypertension, and thrombosis.

Recently, biochemical studies have demonstrated that these benefits are partially mediated by their conversion to ω-3 endocannabinoid epoxide metabolites. These lipid metabolites originate from the epoxidation of ω-3 endocannabinoids, docosahexanoyl ethanolamide (DHEA) and eicosapentaenoyl ethanolamide (EPEA) by cytochrome P450 (CYP) epoxygenases to form epoxydocosapentaenoic acid-ethanolamides (EDP-EAs) and epoxyeicosatetraenoic acid-ethanolamides (EEQ-EAs), respectively.

The EDP-EAs and EEQ-EAs are endogenously produced in rat brain and peripheral organs. Additionally, EDP-EAs and EEQ-EAs dose-dependently decrease pro-inflammatory IL-6 cytokine and increased anti-inflammatory IL-10 cytokine. Furthermore, the EEQ-EAs and EDP-EAs attenuate angiogenesis and cell migration in cancer cells, induce vasodilation in bovine coronary arteries, and reciprocally regulate platelet aggregation in washed human platelets.

Taken together, the ω-3 endocannabinoid epoxides represent a new class of dual acting molecules that display unique pharmacological properties.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31562632

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-030-21735-8_17

Enhancing Breast Cancer Treatment Using a Combination of Cannabidiol and Gold Nanoparticles for Photodynamic Therapy.

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ijms-logo“Indisputably, cancer is a global crisis that requires immediate intervention. Despite the use of conventional treatments over the past decades, it is acceptable to admit that these are expensive, invasive, associated with many side effects and, therefore, a reduced quality of life.

One of the most possible solutions to this could be the use of gold nanoparticle (AuNP) conjugated photodynamic therapy (PDT) in combination with cannabidiol (CBD), a Cannabis derivative from the Cannabis sativa.

Since the use of Cannabis has always been associated with recreation and psychoactive qualities, the positive effects of Cannabis or its derivatives on cancer treatment have been misunderstood and hence misinterpreted.

On the other hand, AuNP-PDT is the most favoured form of treatment for cancer, due to its augmented specificity and minimal risk of side effects compared to conventional treatments. However, its use requires the consideration of several physical, biologic, pharmacologic and immunological factors, which may hinder its effectiveness if not taken into consideration.

In this review, the role of gold nanoparticle mediated PDT combined with CBD treatment on breast cancer cells will be deliberated.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31561450

https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/20/19/4771

Preclinical and Clinical Evidence Supporting Use of Cannabidiol in Psychiatry.

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Image result for hindawi “Cannabidiol (CBD) is a major chemical compound present in Cannabis sativa.

CBD is a nonpsychotomimetic substance, and it is considered one of the most promising candidates for the treatment of psychiatric disorders.

The aim of this review is to illustrate the state of art about scientific research and the evidence of effectiveness of CBD in psychiatric patients.

RESULTS:

Preclinical and clinical studies on potential role of CBD in psychiatry were collected and further discussed. We found four clinical studies describing the effects of CBD in psychiatric patients: two studies about schizophrenic patients and the other two studies carried out on CBD effects in patients affected by generalized social anxiety disorder (SAD).

CONCLUSION:

Results from these studies are promising and suggest that CBD may have a role in the development of new therapeutic strategies in mental diseases, and they justify an in-depth commitment in this field. However, clinical evidence we show for CBD in psychiatric patients is instead still poor and limited to schizophrenia and anxiety, and it needs to be implemented with further studies carried out on psychiatric patients.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31558911

“Results of our research, enriched in assessment of methodological quality of the studies, confirm the view of this cannabinoid as a promising molecule especially in particular sectors of psychiatry such as schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, and autism. CBD is considered a safe substance and is one of the most promising candidates for the treatment of psychiatric disorders”.

https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2019/2509129/

The non-euphoric phytocannabinoid cannabidivarin counteracts intestinal inflammation in mice and cytokine expression in biopsies from UC pediatric patients.

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Pharmacological Research“Patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) using marijuana have been reported to experience symptomatic benefit.

Cannabidivarin (CBDV) is a safe non-psychoactive phytocannabinoid able to activate TRPA1, a member of TRP channels superfamily, which plays a pivotal role in intestinal inflammation.

Here, we have investigated the potential intestinal anti-inflammatory effect of CBDV in mice and in biopsies from pediatric patients with active UC.

Our preclinical study shows that CBDV exerts intestinal anti-inflammatory effects in mice via TRPA1, and in children with active UC.

Since CBDV has a favorable safety profile in humans, it may be considered for possible clinical trials in patients with UC.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31553934

https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1043661819311077

Cannabidiol Is a Novel Modulator of Bacterial Membrane Vesicles.

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 Image result for frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology“Membrane vesicles (MVs) released from bacteria participate in cell communication and host-pathogen interactions.

Roles for MVs in antibiotic resistance are gaining increased attention and in this study we investigated if known anti-bacterial effects of cannabidiol (CBD), a phytocannabinoid from Cannabis sativa, could be in part attributed to effects on bacterial MV profile and MV release.

We found that CBD is a strong inhibitor of MV release from Gram-negative bacteria (E. coli VCS257), while inhibitory effect on MV release from Gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus subsp. aureus Rosenbach) was negligible. When used in combination with selected antibiotics, CBD significantly increased the bactericidal action of several antibiotics in the Gram-negative bacteria.

In addition, CBD increased antibiotic effects of kanamycin in the Gram-positive bacteria, without affecting MV release. CBD furthermore changed protein profiles of MVs released from E. coli after 1 h CBD treatment.

Our findings indicate that CBD may pose as a putative adjuvant agent for tailored co-application with selected antibiotics, depending on bacterial species, to increase antibiotic activity, including via MV inhibition, and help reduce antibiotic resistance.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31552202

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2019.00324/full 

Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol During Adolescence Attenuates Disruption of Dopamine Function Induced in Rats by Maternal Immune Activation.

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Image result for frontiers in behavioral neuroscience“Here, we hypothesized that adolescent Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) worsens the impact of prenatal maternal immune activation (MIA) on ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopamine cells in rat offspring.

Adolescent THC attenuated several MIA-induced effects.

Contrary to our expectations, adolescent THC did not worsen MIA-induced deficits.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31551729

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00202/full

Cannabis use in cancer: a survey of the current state at BC Cancer before recreational legalization in Canada.

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Image result for Curr Oncol.“Cancer patients experience multiple symptoms throughout their illness, and some report benefit from the use of cannabis. There are concerns that many patients are accessing products inappropriate for their situation and potentially putting themselves at risk.

In the present study, we aimed to capture the prevalence of cannabis use among cancer patients at BC Cancer before recreational legalization in Canada and to identify the reasons that patients take cannabis, the various routes of administration they use, and the reasons that prior users stopped.

RESULTS:

Of surveys sent to 2998 patients, 821 (27.4%) were returned and included in analysis. Of those respondents, 23% were currently using cannabis-based products, almost exclusively for medical purposes, and an additional 28% had been users in the past (most often recreationally). Of the patients currently using cannabis, 31% had medical authorization. The most common symptoms that the current users were targeting were pain, insomnia, nausea, and anxiety; many were also hoping for anticancer effects.

CONCLUSIONS:

More than half the respondents had tried cannabis at some time, and almost one quarter of respondents were currently taking cannabis to help manage their symptoms or treat their cancer, or both. Many more patients would consider use with appropriate guidance from a health care professional. More research is needed to inform physicians and patients about safe uses and doses and about the potential adverse effects of cannabis use.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31548810

A Novel Highly Selective Cannabinoid CB2 Agonist Reduces in Vitro Growth and TGF-beta Release of Human Glial Cell Tumors.

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“Cannabinoid receptors have been detected in human gliomas and cannabinoids have been proposed as novel drug candidates in the treatment of brain tumors.

Aim of this study was to test the in vitro antitumor activity of COR167, a novel cannabinoid CB2-selective agonist displaying high binding affinity for human CB2 receptors, on tumor cells isolated from human glioblastoma multiforme and anaplastic astrocytoma.

RESULTS:

COR167 was found to significantly reduce the proliferation of both glioblastoma and anaplastic astrocytoma in a dose-dependent manner at lower doses than other known, less specific CB2 agonists. This activity is independent of apoptosis and is associated with significant reduction of TGF-beta 1 and 2 levels in supernatants of glioma cell cultures.

CONCLUSIONS:

These findings add to the role of cannabinoid CB2 receptor as a possible pharmacological target to counteract glial tumor growth and encourage further work to explore any other pharmacological effect of this novel CB2 agonist useful in the treatment of human gliomas.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31549596

http://www.eurekaselect.com/175066/article

Potential of Cannabinoid Receptor Ligands as Treatment for Substance Use Disorders.

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 “Substance use disorder (SUD) is a major public health crisis worldwide, and effective treatment options are limited.

During the past 2 decades, researchers have investigated the impact of a variety of pharmacological approaches to treat SUD, one of which is the use of medical cannabis or cannabinoids.

Significant progress was made with the discovery of rimonabant, a selective CB1 receptor (CB1R) antagonist (also an inverse agonist), as a promising therapeutic for SUDs and obesity. However, serious adverse effects such as depression and suicidality led to the withdrawal of rimonabant (and almost all other CB1R antagonists/inverse agonists) from clinical trials worldwide in 2008.

Since then, much research interest has shifted to other cannabinoid-based strategies, such as peripheral CB1R antagonists/inverse agonists, neutral CB1R antagonists, allosteric CB1R modulators, CB2R agonists, fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitors, monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL) inhibitors, fatty acid binding protein (FABP) inhibitors, or nonaddictive phytocannabinoids with CB1R or CB2R-binding profiles, as new therapeutics for SUDs.

In this article, we first review recent progress in research regarding the endocannabinoid systems, cannabis reward versus aversion, and the underlying receptor mechanisms. We then review recent progress in cannabinoid-based medication development for the treatment of SUDs.

As evidence continues to accumulate, neutral CB1R antagonists (such as AM4113), CB2R agonists (JWH133, Xie2-64), and nonselective phytocannabinoids (cannabidiol, β-caryophyllene, ∆9-tetrahydrocannabivarin) have shown great therapeutic potential for SUDs, as shown in experimental animals.

Several cannabinoid-based medications (e.g., dronabinol, nabilone, PF-04457845) that entered clinical trials have shown promising results in reducing withdrawal symptoms in cannabis and opioid users.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31549358

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs40263-019-00664-w