“Pain is one of the most common non-motor symptoms of Parkinson disease (PD) and other Parkinson plus syndromes, with a major effect on quality of life.
The aims of the study were to examine the prevalence and characteristics of pain in PD and other Parkinson plus syndromes and patient use and response to pain medications.
“A randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial utilizing vaporized cannabis containing placebo and 6.7% and 2.9% delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) was performed in 42 subjects with central neuropathic pain related to spinal cord injury and disease.
Dose-dependent improvement in pain score was evident across all pain scale elements.
Plans for future work are outlined to explore the relationship of plasma concentrations with the analgesic response to different cannabinoids.
Such an appraisal of descriptors might contribute to the identification of distinct pathophysiologic mechanisms and, ultimately, the development of mechanism-based treatment approaches for neuropathic pain, a condition that remains difficult to treat.”
“Although marijuana use is commonly associated with increased appetite and the likelihood of weight gain, research findings in this area are mixed.
Most studies, however, report cross-sectional associations and rarely control for such important predictors as physical activity, socioeconomic status, and alcohol and other drug use.
The present study indicates a negative association between marijuana use and BMI.
Uncovering a negative association between marijuana use and weight status is a valuable contribution to the literature, as this result contradicts those from some previous studies, which were unable to address time-invariant unobserved heterogeneity.”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27572145
“Myocardial interstitial fibrosis is a major histologic landmark resulting in cardiac dysfunction after myocardial infarction (MI).
Activation of cannabinoid receptor type II (CB2 receptor) have been demonstrated to reduce fibrosis in hepatic cirrhotic rat.
In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of a CB2 receptor selective agonist AM1241 on myocardial fibrosis post MI in mice.
CB2 receptor agonist AM1241 alleviated myocardial interstitial fibrosis via Nrf2 -mediated down-regulation of TGF-β1/Smad3 pathway, which suggested that CB2 receptor activation might represent a promising target for retarding cardiac fibrosis after MI.”
“To estimate whether marijuana use in pregnancy increases risks for adverse neonatal outcomes and clarify if any increased risk is attributable to marijuana use itself or to confounding factors such as tobacco use.
Maternal marijuana use during pregnancy is not an independent risk factor for adverse neonatal outcomes after adjusting for confounding factors.
Thus, the association between maternal marijuana use and adverse outcomes appears attributable to concomitant tobacco use and other confounding factors.”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27607879
“Marijuana Is Safe During pregnancy, Experts Do Not Encourage. Marijuana does not increase pregnancy risk according to new research. It does not have a negative outcome when it comes to premature birth and low birth weight. Still, experts do not encourage marijuana use during pregnancy.” http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/47194/20160910/marijuana-safe-during-pregnancy-experts-encourage.htm
“Pediatric low-grade gliomas (P-LGG) consist of a mixed group of brain tumors that correspond to the majority of CNS tumors in children.
Notably, they may exhibit spontaneous involution after subtotal surgical removal (STR). In this study, we investigated molecular indicators of spontaneous involution in P-LGG.
The P-LGG, which remained stable or that presented spontaneous involution after STR, showed significantly higher CNR1 expression at the time of diagnosis.
We hypothesize that high expression levels of CNR1 provide tumor susceptibility to the antitumor effects of circulating endocannabinoids like anandamide, resulting in tumor involution.
This corroborates with reports suggesting that CNR1 agonists and activators of the endocannabinoid system may represent therapeutic opportunities for children with LGG.
We also suggest that CNR1 may be a prognostic marker for P-LGG.
This is the first time spontaneous involution of P-LGG has been suggested to be induced by endocannabinoids.”
“Cognitive Enhancement (CE) is often discussed in relation to stimulant drugs, such as amphetamines (AMPH).
However, there is some evidence that cannabis (CAN) can be used for CE.
A survey was taken of 1,538 students at four German universities.
A considerable number of students report having used CAN for CE.”
“Activation of cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2R) ameliorates inflammation, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear.
In the present study, we examined whether activation of CB2R could suppress the nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome.
We conclude that activation of CB2R ameliorates DSS-induced colitis through enhancing autophagy that may inhibit NLRP3 inflammasome activation in macrophages.”
“Vascular dementia is the second most common cause of cognitive decline in aged people but the effectual therapeutic target is still missing.
Chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) has been widely found in vascular dementia (VaD) patients. CCH is thought to link with neurodegenerative disorders and their subsequent cognitive impairment.
The present study has been framed to investigate the role of selective agonist of CB2 receptor (1-phenylisatin) in CCH induced VaD.
These results indicate that 2VO induced CCH in rats, which was attenuated with the treatment of 1-phenylisatin.
Hence, it may be suggested that modulation in cannabinoid receptor may provide benefits in CCH as cognitive impairment and VaD.
Therefore, pharmacological positive modulation of CB2 receptors may be a potential research target for alleviation of VaD.”
“Over the past few years there has been a phenomenal resurgence in the interest in the use of Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica for the treatment of epilepsy (among many other disorders as well). Clearly, the media and the proliferation of internet sites offering advice has fueled interest not only among patients and caregivers, but clinicians as well. Mainstream and social media interest in patient testimonials have, for better or worse, created a great deal of buzz. First, to the answer of does CBD provide benefit, the answer appears to be yes. With respect to safety perspective, CBD seemed to be well tolerated in most patients. At least we can finally say with some confidence to our patients, their families, and our colleagues, that there is more to this drug than media hype, and internet buzz.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4988076/