Targeting multiple cannabinoid antitumor pathways with a resorcinol derivative leads to inhibition of advanced stages of breast cancer.

“The psychoactive cannabinoid Δ9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and the non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol(CBD) can both reduce cancer progression each through distinct antitumor pathways.

Our goal was to discover a compound that could efficiently target both cannabinoid antitumor pathways.

KEY RESULTS:

CBD reduced breast cancer metastasis in advanced stages of the disease as the direct result of down-regulating the transcriptional regulator Id1. However, this was associated with moderate increases in survival. We therefore screened for analogs that could co-target cannabinoid antitumor pathways (CBD- and THC-associated) and discovered the compound O-1663. This analog inhibited Id1, produced a marked stimulation of ROS, upregulated autophagy, and induced apoptosis. Of all compounds tested, it was the most potent at inhibiting breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion in culture and metastasis in vivo.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS:

O-1663 prolonged survival in advanced stages of breast cancer metastasis. Developing compounds that can simultaneously target multiple cannabinoid antitumor pathways efficiently may provide a novel approach for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24910342

“Anti-cancer effects of resorcinol derivatives on ascitic and solid forms of Ehrlich carcinoma in mice.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/13774935

“Ardisiphenol D, a resorcinol derivative identified from Ardisia brevicaulis, exerts antitumor effect through inducing apoptosis in human non-small-cell lung cancer A549 cells.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24392814

“Antitumor effect of resorcinol derivatives from the roots of Ardisia brevicaulis by inducing apoptosis.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21751842

“Resorcinol derivatives from Ardisia maculosa.”  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17885843

“Cannabidiol (CBD) is among the major secondary metabolites of Cannabis devoid of the delta-9-tetra-hydrocannabinol psychoactive effects. It is a resorcinol-based compound with a broad spectrum of potential therapeutic properties, including neuroprotective effects in numerous pathological conditions.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28412918

http://www.thctotalhealthcare.com/category/breast-cancer/

Cannabis oil from marijuana is having success treating COPD

COPD

“COPD is the often used term for “Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease,” a rather clumsy and vague description for most of us. It includes a few different lung issues, such as emphysema, bronchiectasis and chronic bronchitis. The scary part is that it’s a mystery to our pharmaceutical-dependent medical system. And it gets progressively worse, often leading to death.

It’s third in disease death rates, behind only heart disease and cancer. COPD creates constricted airways in one’s lungs or renders small lung sacks inelastic and unable to fully accommodate breathing cycles; thus, there is obstruction.

COPD symptoms include some or all of the following: losing one’s breath with minor activity, chronic coughing, increased sputum, chest tightness or pain with difficulty breathing, increased lung infections and fatigue. It has been observed to have four stages. Many of those lugging oxygen canisters around are in the last two stages.

The pharmaceuticals prescribed for treating symptoms often have side effects that cause more problems. Big Pharma is still fishing for cures, while COPD diagnoses rates continue rising in our toxic environment.

Medical marijuana to the rescue once again

The treatment situation is so bleak and harmful with mainstream medicine that those desperate to breathe normally and cough up less mucus have desperately turned to medical marijuana for at least some relief without negative side effects.

Smoking marijuana cigarettes is shunned for obvious reasons, but many claim that vaping, or using a vaporizer to inhale cannabis, is useful for COPD without exacerbating the lungs’ inflammatory condition.

But better results have been achieved by ingesting cannabis, especially the potent, highly condensed oil extract that Rick Simpson pioneered in Canada and now in Eastern Europe. Many medical marijuana advocates, especially those in medical-cannabis-friendly states, have learned to make the oil and provide it to those in need.

Most of the cannabis treatment publicity has gone toward cancer, Crohn’s disease, chronic epileptic seizures and glaucoma. Even Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis victims have experienced positive results from various cannabis products with THC applications.

Pharmaceutical-dependent mainstream medicine hasn’t been able to cure any of these diseases or even alleviate symptoms without creating complications, some fatal.

More COPD patients have hopped on the cannabis cure bandwagon with positive results lately. These results include folks with late-stage COPD and severe emphysema.

An anecdotal sampling

At the relatively young age of 36, Jeff Waters was diagnosed with COPD. Eight years later he had to be rushed to an ER during another bout with bronchitis.

Lung scarring was discovered, and his condition was raised to stage 2 COPD. While prescribing several pharmaceuticals, the doctor told him that it would continue to get worse and eventually kill him.

Jeff did continue to get worse. He was unable to climb a flight of stairs and he wound up with stage 3 COPD and an oxygen canister to prove it. Showering and shaving without his oxygen supply turned out to be almost too arduous of a task.

Then an allergic reaction to a prescribed high blood pressure medication put him on life support in ICU with severe pneumonia for a month. After his recovery, he resolved to handle his COPD without mainstream medical interventions.

Jeff found COPD sufferers online who had resolved their COPD issues with cannabis oil. He networked with them and found his own sources for cannabis oil.

After only two months of using the oil, Jeff went off oxygen and all the pharmaceuticals he had been prescribed. He now walks two to five miles daily and claims that cannabis oil has allowed him “to get his life back.””

http://www.naturalnews.com/044664_cannabis_oil_copd_marijuana.html

http://www.thctotalhealthcare.com/category/copd-chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease/

Marijuana can treat autoimmune diseases, scientific study states

“Weed enthusiasts are getting their case for nationwide decriminalization of marijuana bolstered considerably by a new scientific study that promises the controversial plant can treat multiple medical maladies.

Scientists at the University of South Carolina have discovered marijuana’s potential to treat autoimmune diseases — such as arthritis, lupus, colitis and multiple sclerosis — in which chronic inflammation plays a pivotal role.

The Journal of Biological Chemistry published the researchers’ findings that state marijuana’s potential key role in fighting these diseases lies in its capacity to suppress certain immune functions, most particularly inflammation.

The study examined whether marijuana’s main active constituent, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), could affect DNA through “epigenetic” pathways.

The group of molecules with the capacity to alter DNA and the functioning of genes it controls is collectively referred to as the epigenome. It includes a group of molecules called histones, which are responsible for inflammation, both beneficial and harmful.

The research team, led by Mitzi Nagarkatti, Prakash Nagarkatti and Xiaoming Yang, found that THC can, indeed, affect DNA expression through epigenetic pathways by altering histones.

As recreational and medical use of marijuana become more acceptable in developed countries, more research is being conducted and more potential health applications are being uncovered.

Marijuana already has a variety of medical uses including treatment of chronic pain, nausea, vomiting and the wasting syndrome experienced by some AIDS patients.”

http://atlantadailyworld.com/2014/06/05/marijuana-can-treat-autoimmune-diseases-scientific-study-states/

Autoimmune Diseases Could be Treated With Medical Marijuana

More findings of the medical benefits of marijuana could result in a universal legalization of the drug.

“Researchers at the University of South Carolina conducted a study that analyzed the effects of THC in marijuana on patients with autoimmune diseases because the drug has previously shown to have an immunomodulatory activity.

Immunomodulatory means something is capable of modifying or regulating one or more immune functions, or can provide an immunologic adjustment, regulation, or potentiation. In this study’s case, the researchers found that the application of marijuana has the ability to suppress an immune response to treat autoimmune diseases, such as arthritis, lupus, colitis, multiple sclerosis, and others.”

http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/15145/20140603/autoimmune-diseases-treated-medical-marijuana.htm

Marijuana’s potential for treating autoimmune disorders

“A new study provides evidence that THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), a principal ingredient in marijuana, may be beneficial in treating those with autoimmune disorders.

The study is the first to explore how tiny, yet powerful molecules called microRNAs are influenced by THC. The ability to alter microRNA expression could hold the key to successful treatments for a whole host of autoimmune diseases, including arthritis and multiple sclerosis.”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131125121712.htm

Marijuana shows potential in treating autoimmune disease

“A team of University of South Carolina researchers led by Mitzi Nagarkatti, Prakash Nagarkatti and Xiaoming Yang have discovered a novel pathway through which marijuana’s main active constituent, THC, can suppress the body’s immune functions…

Marijuana is now regularly and successfully used to alleviate the nausea and vomiting many cancer patients experience as side effects to chemotherapy, combat the wasting syndrome that causes some AIDS patients to lose significant amounts of weight and muscle mass and ease chronic pain that is unresponsive to opioids, among other applications.

The university study has uncovered yet another potential application for marijuana, in the suppression of immune response to treat autoimmune diseases.”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140602150914.htm

Marijuana Might be Effective in Treating Autoimmune Diseases: Study

 Marijuana

“University of South Carolina researchers say that marijuana can reduce inflammation and could be effective in treating autoimmune diseases such as arthritis, lupus and colitis.

Marijuana is not an FDA-approved medication. The main ingredient in the drug – tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) – is approved to lower nausea and vomiting in people exposed to chemotherapy. The compound is also used to fight wasting syndrome in people with AIDS.”

http://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/7370/20140603/marijuana-effective-treating-autoimmune-diseases-researchers.htm

Do cannabinoids have a therapeutic role in transplantation?

Figure 1

“Cannabinoids are a group of terpenophenolic compounds structurally similar to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) from the plant Cannabis sativa.

Cannabinoids have emerged as powerful drug candidates for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases due to their immunosuppressive properties.

Significant clinical and experimental data on the use of cannabinoids as anti-inflammatory agents exist in many autoimmune disease settings, but virtually no studies have been undertaken on their potential role in transplant rejection. Here we suggest a theoretical role for the use of cannabinoids in preventing allograft rejection.

…manipulation of endocannabinoids in vivo by activating their biosynthesis and inhibiting cellular uptake and metabolism may offer another pathway to regulate immune response during allograft rejection.

…cannabinoids have emerged as novel anti-inflammatory agents because of their efficacy in the treatment of many immune-mediated disorders such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and autoimmune hepatitis.

Transplantation is one critical area of medicine that requires the use of immunosuppressants.

 Inasmuch as, immune cells constitute an important resource of endocannabinoids, it may be easier to manipulate their levels during an immune response, which could have a direct and immediate impact on such cells that determine the fate of the allograft.

In summary, targeting cannabinoid receptors and understanding the role and use of exo-and endocannabinoids in experimental allograft rejection models may provide an exciting new beginning with significant translational impact.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2923447/

Attenuation of experimental autoimmune hepatitis by exogenous and endogenous cannabinoids: involvement of regulatory T cells.

Fig. 1

“Immune-mediated liver diseases including autoimmune and viral hepatitis are a major health problem worldwide. Natural cannabinoids such as Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) effectively modulate immune cell function, and they have shown therapeutic potential in treating inflammatory diseases.

We investigated the effects of THC in a murine model of concanavalin A (ConA)-induced hepatitis…

Our data demonstrate that targeting cannabinoid receptors using exogenous or endogenous cannabinoids and use of FAAH inhibitors may constitute novel therapeutic modalities to treat immune-mediated liver inflammation.

δ-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the major psychoactive component of marijuana (Cannabis sativa), has wide-ranging pharmacological properties. The cannabinoid compounds possess significant immunosuppressive and anti-inflammatory properties. THC and cannabinoid receptor agonists have shown promise in several models of inflammation.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2828293/

Immunoactive effects of cannabinoids: considerations for the therapeutic use of cannabinoid receptor agonists and antagonists

Figure 1

“The active constituents of Cannabis sativa have been used for centuries as recreational drugs and medicinal agents. Today, marijuana is the most prevalent drug of abuse in the United States and, conversely, therapeutic use of marijuana constituents are gaining mainstream clinical and political acceptance.

Given the documented contributions of endocannabinoid signaling to a range of physiological systems, including cognitive function, and the control of eating behaviors, it is unsurprising that cannabinoid receptor agonists and antagonists are showing significant clinical potential.

In addition to the neuroactive effects of cannabinoids, an emerging body of data suggests that both endogenous and exogenous cannabinoids are potently immunoactive.

The central premise of this review article is that the immunological effects of cannabinoids should be considered in the context of each prescribing decision.

We present evidence that the immunological effects of cannabinoid receptor agonists and antagonists are highly relevant to the spectrum of disorders for which cannabinoid therapeutics are currently offered.

Therapeutically relevant cannabinoid receptor ligands include tetra-hydrocannabinol itself, its synthetic forms, and its closely related compounds.

As a final point, the application of CB1 antagonists may be immunostimulative…”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3804300/