“In this study we evaluated the effects of the CB1/CB2 cannabinoid receptor agonist on antigen-induced asthma-like reaction in sensitized guinea pigs…
These findings suggest that targeting cannabinoid receptors could be a novel preventative therapeutic strategy in asthmatic patients.”
“Asthma represents a public health problem and traditionally is classified as an atopic disease, where the allergen can induce clinical airway inflammation, bronchial hyperresponsiveness, and reversible obstruction of airways.
Studies have demonstrated the presence of T-helper 2 lymphocytes in the lung of patients with asthma. These cells are involved in cytokine production that regulates immunoglobulin synthesis.
Recognizing that T cell interaction with antigens/allergens is key to the development of inflammatory diseases, the aim of this study is to evaluate the anti-inflammatory potential of cannabidiol (CBD) in this setting.
CBD treatment was able to decrease the serum levels of all analyzed cytokines except for IL-10 levels.
CBD seems to be a potential new drug to modulate inflammatory response in asthma.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26101464
“Use of marijuana for chronic pain, neuropathic pain, and spasticity due to multiple sclerosis is supported by high-quality evidence.
Several of these trials had positive results, suggesting that marijuana or cannabinoids may be efficacious for these indications.
Medical marijuana is used to treat a host of indications, a few of which have evidence to support treatment with marijuana and many that do not. Physicians should educate patients about medical marijuana to ensure that it is used appropriately and that patients will benefit from its use.”
“Cannabis and cannabinoid drugs are widely used to treat disease or alleviate symptoms, but their efficacy for specific indications is not clear.
To conduct a systematic review of the benefits and adverse events (AEs) of cannabinoids.
There was moderate-quality evidence to support the use of cannabinoids for the treatment of chronic pain and spasticity. There was low-quality evidence suggesting that cannabinoids were associated with improvements in nausea and vomiting due to chemotherapy, weight gain in HIV infection, sleep disorders, and Tourette syndrome.
Cannabinoids were associated with an increased risk of short-term AEs. Common AEs included dizziness, dry mouth, nausea, fatigue, somnolence, euphoria, vomiting, disorientation, drowsiness, confusion, loss of balance, and hallucination.”
“The pharmacological (and recreational) effects of cannabis have been known for centuries.
However, it is only recently that one has identified two subtypes of G-protein-coupled receptors, namely CB1 and CB2-receptors, which mediate the numerous effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol and other cannabinoids.
Logically, the existence of cannabinoid-receptors implies that endogenous ligands for these receptors (endocannabinoids) exist and exert a physiological role.
Hence, arachidonoylethanolamide (anandamide) and sn-2 arachidonoylglycerol, the first two endocannabinoids identified, are formed from plasma membrane phospholipids and act as CB1 and/or CB2 agonists.
The presence of both CB1 and CB2-receptors in the rat heart is noteworthy.
This endogenous cardiac cannabinoid system is involved in several phenomena associated with cardioprotective effects.
Endocannabinoids and synthetic cannabinoids, the latter through either CB1 or CB2-receptors, exert direct cardioprotective effects in rat isolated hearts.
The ability of cannabinoids to reduce infarct size has been confirmed in vivo in anesthetized mice and rats.
This latter effect appears to be mediated through CB2-receptors.
Thus, the endogenous cardiac cannabinoid system, through activation of CB2-receptors, appears to be an important mechanism of protection against myocardial ischemia.”
“Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the major psychoactive component of marijuana, is a cannabinoid agonist that exerts its effects by activating at least two specific receptors (CB1 and CB2) that belong to the seven transmembrane G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) family.
Both CB1 and CB2 mRNA and proteins are present in the heart.
THC treatment was beneficial against hypoxia in neonatal cardiomyocytes in vitro.
We also observed a neuroprotective effect of an ultra low dose of THC when applied to mice before brain insults.
The present study was aimed to test and characterize the cardioprotective effects of a very low dose of THC…
All protocols of THC administration were found to be beneficial.
CONCLUSION:
A single ultra low dose of THC before ischemia is a safe and effective treatment that reduces myocardial ischemic damage.”
“CANNABINOIDS ARE NATURAL and synthetic compounds structurally or pharmacologically related to the constituents of the plant Cannabis sativa or to the endogenous agonists (endocannabinoids) of the cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors.
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a major cannabinoid constituent of Cannabis.
In contrast to tetrahydrocannabinol, CBD binds very weakly to CB1 and CB2 receptors. Contrary to most cannabinoids, CBD does not induce psychoactive or cognitive effects.
CBD has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties. CBD (together with tetrahydrocannabinol) has been successfully tested in a few preliminary human trials related to autoimmune diseases…
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a major, nonpsychoactive Cannabis constituent with anti-inflammatory activity mediated by enhancing adenosine signaling.
Inasmuch as adenosine receptors are promising pharmaceutical targets for ischemic heart diseases, we tested the effect of CBD on ischemic rat hearts.
Our study shows that CBD induces a substantial in vivo cardioprotective effect from ischemia that is not observed ex vivo.
Inasmuch as CBD has previously been administered to humans without causing side effects, it may represent a promising novel treatment for myocardial ischemia.”
“Preventive treatment with cannabinoid agonists has been reported to reduce the infarct size in a mouse model of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion.
Here we investigated the possible cardioprotective effect of selective CB(2) cannabinoid receptor activation during ischemia.
Our data suggest that administration during ischemia reduces the infarct size in a mouse model of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion through a direct cardioprotective activity on cardiomyocytes and neutrophils.”
“Post-myocardial infarction (MI) heart failure is a major public health problem in Western countries and results from ischemia/reperfusion (IR)-induced cell death, remodeling, and contractile dysfunction.
Ex vivo studies have demonstrated the cardioprotective anti-inflammatory effect of the cannabinoid type 2 (CB2) receptor agonists within hours after IR.
Herein, we evaluated the in vivo effect of CB2 receptors on IR-induced cell death, fibrosis, and cardiac dysfunction and investigated the target role of cardiac myocytes and fibroblasts… CB2 receptor activation may protect against post-IR heart failure through direct inhibition of cardiac myocyte and fibroblast death and prevention of myofibroblast activation…
In conclusion, modulation of the endocannabinoid system is emerging as a novel approach for the therapy of various inflammatory, metabolic, cardiovascular, hepatic, and neurodegenerative disorders.
CB1 receptors exert cardioprotective effects in cirrhotic rats and against doxorubicin toxicity. Pharmacological inhibition of the endocannabinoid degradative pathway, fatty acid aminohydrolase, represents a novel protective strategy against chronic inflammation, oxidative and nitrative stresses, and apoptosis associated with cardiovascular aging and atherosclerosis.
CB2 receptor activation is thought to be anti-inflammatory and involved in protective mechanisms during atherosclerosis. In addition, selective CB2 agonists protect against cerebral and hepatic IR injuries.
We demonstrated a highly protective role of CB2 receptors in post-IR cardiac remodeling, potentially related to activation of antiapoptotic, prosurvival, and antifibrogenic pathways.
Our results infer that CB2 agonists may be useful in preventing reperfusion injury in acute coronary syndrome and provide novel evidence for the pivotal role of CB2 receptors in post-IR-induced cardiomyopathy.”
“Although cannabinoids have been recreationally employed for thousands of years, it was not until the discovery of their specific receptors, in the early nineties, that the molecular basis of cannabinoid activity have began to be understood.
Growing research in this field has demonstrated not only that the action of cannabinoids in mammals is mainly receptor-mediated, but also that endogenous cannabinoids, such as anandamide, are produced, metabolized, and taken up across the cell membrane through a facilitated uptake process.
The exogenous administration of cannabinoids, as well as the manipulation of their endogenous levels have been related to a variety of effects, such as analgesia, (temporary) impairment of cognition and learning, appetite enhancement and peripheral vasodilation.
Hence, the endocannabinoid system, including the CB1 and CB2 receptors, the metabolizing enzyme fatty acid amide hydrolase and the anandamide transporter, is a potential target for the development of novel therapeutic drugs in the treatment of various conditions, such as pain, feeding disorders and vascular disease among others.
Although most of the research in the field of cannabinoids has been focused on their effects in the central nervous system, a growing line of evidence indicates that cannabinoids can also play a major role in the control of physiopathological functions in the cardiovascular system.
In this context, endocannabinoids have been proposed as novel possible hypotensive agents, and have been involved in the hypotension observed in septic shock, acute myocardial infarction and cirrhosis. In addition, a protective role for endocannabinoids has been described in ischemia.”