THC Total Health Care

A comprehensive encyclopedia of THC related medical research articles

Cannabis phenolics and their bioactivities.

Posted on August 12, 2017 by David Worrell

“Although Cannabis sativa L. is one of the most versatile plant species with multipurpose use both as medical, alimentary source and as psychoactive abuse, its biomedical relevance focused the attention on major cannabinoids. Phytochemical characterization of cannabis highlights the presence of various non-cannabinoids constituents including flavonoids, spiroindans, dihyrostilbenes, dihydrophenanthrenes, lignanamides, steroids and alkaloids. Cannabis is a plant with high pharmacological and nutrition values, its potentialities and applications are not only circumscribed to cannabinoids biological activities, but also defined by non-cannabinoid compounds. This review deals with polyphenols present in this plant, their biosynthesis, their bioactivities and their synthesis, when this occurred.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28799497]]>

Speechlessness in Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome: Cannabis-Based Medicines Improve Severe Vocal Blocking Tics in Two Patients.

Posted on August 11, 2017 by David Worrell

“We report the cases of two young German male patients with treatment-resistant Tourette syndrome (TS), who suffer from incapacitating stuttering-like speech disfluencies caused by vocal blocking tics and palilalia. Case 1: a 19-year old patient received medical cannabis at a dose of 1 × 0.1 g cannabis daily. Case 2: a 16-year old patient initially received dronabinol at a maximum dose of 22.4-33.6 mg daily. Both treatments provided significant symptom improvement of vocal blocking tics as well as of comorbid conditions and were well tolerated. Thus, cannabis-based medicine appears to be effective in treatment-resistant TS patients with vocal blocking tics.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28796166

http://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/18/8/1739

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Perioperative Patient Beliefs Regarding Potential Effectiveness of Marijuana (Cannabinoids) for Treatment of Pain: A Prospective Population Survey.

Posted on August 11, 2017 by David Worrell

“Cannabinoids have an expanding presence in medicine. Perioperative patients’ perceptions of the effectiveness of these compounds, and acceptance if prescribed for pain, have not been previously described. Our primary objective was to describe patients’ beliefs regarding the potential effectiveness of cannabinoids for the treatment of acute and chronic pain, as well as gauge patient acceptance of these compounds if prescribed by a physician. More than 80% of this cohort of preoperative patients believed that marijuana could be at least somewhat effective for the treatment of pain after surgery and would be willing to use cannabinoid compounds if prescribed by their physician. Patients generally believe that marijuana could be at least somewhat effective for the management of pain and are willing to use cannabinoid compounds for this indication, if prescribed by a physician.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28796754

https://insights.ovid.com/crossref?an=00115550-900000000-99321

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Effects of Cannabidiol on Morphine Conditioned Place Preference in Mice.

Posted on August 10, 2017 by David Worrell

“This study sought to determine whether the cannabis constituent cannabidiol attenuates the development of morphine reward in the conditioned place preference paradigm. Separate groups of mice received either saline or morphine in combination with one of four doses of cannabidiol using three sets of drug/no-drug conditioning trials. After drug-place conditioning, morphine mice displayed robust place preference that was attenuated by 10 mg/kg cannabidiol. Further, when administered alone, this dose of cannabidiol was void of rewarding and aversive properties. The finding that cannabidiol blocks opioid reward suggests that this compound may be useful in addiction treatment settings.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28793355 https://www.thieme-connect.de/DOI/DOI?10.1055/s-0043-117838]]>

Modulation of Astrocyte Activity by Cannabidiol, a Nonpsychoactive Cannabinoid.

Posted on August 10, 2017 by David Worrell

“The astrocytes have gained in recent decades an enormous interest as a potential target for neurotherapies, due to their essential and pleiotropic roles in brain physiology and pathology. Their precise regulation is still far from understood, although several candidate molecules/systems arise as promising targets for astrocyte-mediated neuroregulation and/or neuroprotection. The cannabinoid system and its ligands have been shown to interact and affect activities of astrocytes. Cannabidiol (CBD) is the main non-psychotomimetic cannabinoid derived from Cannabis. CBD is devoid of direct CB1 and CB2 receptor activity, but exerts a number of important effects in the brain. Here, we attempt to sum up the current findings on the effects of CBD on astrocyte activity, and in this way on central nervous system (CNS) functions, across various tested models and neuropathologies. The collected data shows that increased astrocyte activity is suppressed in the presence of CBD in models of ischemia, Alzheimer-like and Multiple-Sclerosis-like neurodegenerations, sciatic nerve injury, epilepsy, and schizophrenia. Moreover, CBD has been shown to decrease proinflammatory functions and signaling in astrocytes.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28788104 http://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/18/8/1669]]>

Placebo Effects of Edible Cannabis: Reported Intoxication Effects at a 30-Minute Delay.

Posted on August 5, 2017 by David Worrell

“Previous research has demonstrated the ability of non-active smoked cannabis cigarettes to induce subjective effects of intoxication (i.e., placebo effect). No studies have been conduced to test whether edible forms of cannabis, which are associated with a significant delay in onset of effect, are able to induce a placebo effect. In the present study, 20 participants were told that they would receive an edible cannabis lollipop containing a high dose of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), but were instead given a placebo control. Measures of intoxication and mood were taken at baseline, 30 minutes, and 60 minutes post-ingestion of the placebo lollipop. Results of four repeated-measures ANOVAs found significant and quadratic changes across time in cannabis (ARCI m-scale) intoxication (F(2,18) = 4.90, p = .01, η² = .22) and negative mood (F(2,18) = 3.99, p = .05, η² = .19). Changes in positive mood and the overall measure of general intoxication (ARCI) failed to reach significance. The present study provides preliminary evidence that a placebo effect can be induced with inert edible agents when participants are told that they are receiving active THC. This is the first known study to demonstrate an edible cannabis intoxication placebo effect.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28771093

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02791072.2017.1354409?journalCode=ujpd20

“Studies in healthy volunteers show that even placebo cannabis results in reports of “high feeling”” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5152762/

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Could Cannabidiol be a Treatment Option for Intractable Childhood and Adolescent Epilepsy?

Posted on August 5, 2017 by David Worrell

“Epilepsy is an important disease that affects brain function, particularly in those under 3 years old. Uncontrolled seizures can affect cognitive function and quality of life. For these reasons, many trials have been conducted to investigate treatments for pediatric epilepsy. Currently, many antiepileptic drugs are available for the treatment of epilepsy, but cases of intractable epilepsy continue to exist. In the past, cannabis has been tested as a potential treatment of intractable epilepsy. Since 2013, 10 epilepsy centers in America have conducted research regarding the efficacy of cannabis to treat epilepsy. Cannabis has many components, including cannabidiol (CBD) and Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). THC has psychoactive properties exerted through its binding of the cannabinoid receptor (CBR) whereas CBD is a CBR antagonist. The inhibition of epilepsy by CBD may therefore be caused by various mechanisms, although the detailed mechanisms of CBD actions have not yet been well defined. In most studies, trial doses of CBD were 2-5 mg/kg/day. Several such studies have shown that CBD does have efficacy for treatment of epilepsy. Reported adverse effects of CBD were mostly mild, including drowsiness, diarrhea, and decreased appetite. Severe adverse reactions requiring treatment, such as status epilepticus, have also been reported but it is not clear that this is related to CBD. Furthermore, many previous studies have been limited by an open-label or survey design. In future, double-blind, controlled trials are required and the use of CBD to treat other neurological problems should also be investigated.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28775950 “Most studies suggest anticonvulsant effects of CBD, and consider most adverse effects to be mild. It must be borne in mind that CBD is still illegal in many contexts. However, it has the potential to treat various neurological problems, including epilepsy.” http://www.j-epilepsy.org/journal/view.php?doi=10.14581/jer.17003

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Blunted stress reactivity in chronic cannabis users

Posted on August 3, 2017 by David Worrell

“One of the most commonly cited reasons for chronic cannabis use is to cope with stress. Consistent with this, cannabis users have shown reduced emotional arousal and dampened stress reactivity in response to negative imagery. Chronic cannabis use is associated with blunted stress reactivity.” https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00213-017-4648-z?no-access=true

“WSU study: Regular marijuana users more calm under stress” http://komonews.com/news/local/wsu-study-regular-marijuana-users-more-calm-under-stress

“Potheads don’t stress easily, say WSU researchers” http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2017/jul/31/potheads-dont-stress-easily-say-wsu-researchers/

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Going to pot? The impact of dispensary closures on crime☆

Posted on July 31, 2017 by David Worrell

“Jurisdictions that sanction medical or, more recently, recreational marijuana use often allow retail sales at dispensaries. Dispensaries are controversial as many believe they contribute to local crime. To assess this claim, we analyze the short-term mass closing of hundreds of medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles.

Contrary to popular wisdom, we find an immediate increase in crime around dispensaries ordered to close relative to those allowed to remain open. The increase is specific to the type of crime most plausibly deterred by bystanders, and is correlated with neighborhood walkability. We find a similar pattern of results for temporary restaurant closures due to health code violations. A likely common mechanism is that “eyes upon the street” deter some types of crime.”

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0094119017300281?via%3Dihub

“Closing medical marijuana dispensaries increases crime, according to new study. Contrary to popular belief, medical marijuana dispensaries (MMDs) reduce crime in their immediate areas, suggests a new report.” https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170711125704.htm

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Integrating Endocannabinoid Signaling and Cannabinoids into the Biology and Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Posted on July 27, 2017 by David Worrell

“Exposure to stress is an undeniable, but in most cases surmountable, part of life. However, in certain individuals, exposure to severe or cumulative stressors can lead to an array of pathological conditions including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), characterized by debilitating trauma-related intrusive thoughts, avoidance behaviors, hyperarousal, as well as depressed mood and anxiety. In the context of the rapidly changing political and legal landscape surrounding use of cannabis products in the United States, there has been a surge of public and research interest in the role of cannabinoids in the regulation of stress-related biological processes and in their potential therapeutic application for stress-related psychopathology. Here we review the current state of knowledge regarding the effects of cannabis and cannabinoids in PTSD and the preclinical and clinical literature on the effects of cannabinoids and endogenous cannabinoid signaling systems in the regulation of biological processes related to the pathogenesis of PTSD. Potential therapeutic implications of the reviewed literature are also discussed. Lastly, we propose that a state of endocannabinoid deficiency could represent a stress-susceptibility endophenotype predisposing to the development of trauma-related psychopathology and provide biologically plausible support for the self-medication hypotheses used to explain high rates of cannabis use in patients with trauma-related disorders.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28745306 https://www.nature.com/npp/journal/vaop/naam/abs/npp2017162a.html]]>