Tag Archives: treatment

The promise and dilemma of cannabinoid therapy: lessons from animal studies of bone disease.

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“The endocannabinoid system plays an important role in numerous physiological processes and represents a potential drug target for diseases ranging from brain disorders to cancer…

In the aging skeleton, CB1 deficiency causes accelerated osteoporosis characterized mainly by a significant reduction in bone formation coupled to enhanced adipocyte accumulation in the bone marrow.

A similar acceleration of bone loss was also reported in aging CB2-deficient mice but found to be associated with enhanced bone turnover.

This perspective describes the role of cannabinoid ligands and their receptors in bone metabolism and highlights the promise and dilemma of therapeutic exploitation of the endocannabinoid system for treatment of bone disorders.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3868875/

Chronic administration during early adulthood does not alter the hormonally-dependent disruptive effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) on complex behavior in female rats.

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“This study examined whether chronic Δ9-THC during early adulthood would produce the same hormonally-dependent deficits in learning that are produced by chronic Δ9-THC during adolescence…

no significant effects of chronic treatment and no significant interaction between the chronic treatment and cannabinoid signaling. Thus, acute Δ9-THC produced hormonally-dependent effects on learning and performance behavior, but a period of chronic administration during early adulthood did not alter these effects significantly, which is contrary to what we and others have shown for chronic administration during adolescence.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24361784

The agonist binding mechanism of human CB2 receptor studied by molecular dynamics simulation, free energy calculation and 3D-QSAR studies.

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“CB2-selective agonists have drawn attention in drug discovery, since CB2 becomes a promising target for the treatment of neuropathic pain without psychoactive or other CNS-related side effects…

A combinational exploration of both CoMFA steric and potential contour maps for CB2 affinities and the MD studied interaction modes sheds light on the structural requirements for CB2 agonists and serves as a basis for the design of novel CB2 agonists.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24358778

Cannabis Finds Its Way into Treatment of Crohn’s Disease.

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“In ancient medicine, cannabis has been widely used to cure disturbances and inflammation of the bowel. A recent clinical study now shows that the medicinal plant Cannabis sativa has lived up to expectations and proved to be highly efficient in cases of inflammatory bowel diseases.

In a prospective placebo-controlled study, it has been shown what has been largely anticipated from anecdotal reports, i.e. that cannabis produces significant clinical benefits in patients with Crohn’s disease. The mechanisms involved are not yet clear but most likely include peripheral actions on cannabinoid receptors 1 and 2, and may also include central actions.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24356243

“In their prospective study, Naftali et al. used THC-free Cannabis as placebo with no other cannabinoids present. However, we should consider that also other ingredients of Cannabis, such as cannabidiol, cannabigerol, and tetrahydrocannabivarine (THCV), all of them non-psychotropic components of Cannabis, have proven antiinflammatory effects in experimental intestinal inflammation. Their actions partly involve non-CB receptor mechanisms via, for instance, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) and transient receptor potential cation channels subfamily V receptors (TRPV) and should be regarded as additive beneficial effects of Cannabis in the improvement of colitis in addition to THC-mediated effects.

 …an 8-week treatment with THC-rich Cannabis caused a decrease of the Crohn’s disease activity index (CDAI) in 90% of patients without producing significant side effects…

In summary, in agreement with the ancient use of Cannabis in intestinal disturbances and one decade of animal research, Cannabis was shown in a clinical trial to reduce symptoms in patients with CD. This elegant translation should be followed by larger trials confirming these results and by trials establishing the involved mechanisms to open a promising direction for future treatment of IBD.”

Full-text: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4076530/

Expression and functional relevance of cannabinoid receptor 1 in hodgkin lymphoma.

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“Cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1) is expressed in certain types of malignancies. An analysis of CB1 expression and function in Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), one of the most frequent lymphomas, was not performed to date.

We examined the distribution of CB1 protein in primary cases of HL. Using lymphoma derived cell lines, the role of CB1 signaling on cell survival was investigated.

CONCLUSIONS: The present study identifies CB1 as a feature of HL, which might serve as a potential selective target in the treatment of Hodgkin lymphoma.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24349109

Marijuana treatments for autoimmune disorders

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“Researchers from the University of South Carolina say that tetrahydrocannabinol, the principal constituent of marijuana, may have another medical use – treating those with autoimmune disorders.

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is known to have analgesic effects so can be used to treat pain. It also aids relaxation and can reduce feelings of nausea and stimulate appetite…

Now, a new study, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, explores how analgesicmicroRNAs are influenced by THC.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, single-stranded, non-coding RNAs that play a vital role in regulating gene expression. And the authors claim that the ability to alter miRNA expression may be the key to successful treatment for many autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis, arthritis and type 1 diabetes.”

More: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/269432.php

Unique effects of compounds active at both cannabinoid and serotonin receptors during stroke.

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“We reported previously that both a cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2R) agonist and a cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R) antagonist were protective in the treatment of transient middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion injury (MCAO/R) and that they acted in a synergistic manner when administered in combination. The goal of the current study was to determine which of the potential cannabinoid receptors participate in the protective effects of this drug combination in a mouse model of MCAO/R.

The effects of administration of the CB2R agonist/CB1R antagonist combination on infarct size and cerebral blood flow during a 1-h occlusion were tested…

In conclusion, administration of the CB2R agonist/CB1R antagonist combination causes a significant reduction in infarct size in the MCAO/R model. The protective effect involves both the CB2R and the 5-HT1A receptor. Neither the CB1R nor the TRPV1 receptors appear to participate in this response.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24323810

Preventive and treatment effects of a hemp seed (Cannabis sativa L.) meal protein hydrolysate against high blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

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“This work determined the ability of hemp seed meal protein hydrolysate (HMH)-containing diets to attenuate elevated blood pressure (hypertension) development in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs)…

CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that HMH with strong hypotensive effects in SHRs could be used as a therapeutic agent for both the prevention and treatment of hypertension.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24292743

Cannabidiol as a potential treatment for psychosis.

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“…the cannabis constituent cannabidiol (CBD) may have antipsychotic properties.

This review concisely describes the role of the endocannabinoid system in the development of psychosis and provides an overview of currently available animal, human experimental, imaging, epidemiological and clinical studies that investigated the antipsychotic properties of CBD…

Evidence from several research domains suggests that CBD shows potential for antipsychotic treatment.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24309088

Advances in the management of multiple sclerosis spasticity: experiences from recent studies and everyday clinical practice.

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“Herbal (smoked) cannabis has long been recognized as a possible option for relief of spasticity and neuropathic pain… An innovative method of benefiting from the mode of action of cannabinoids while limiting their drawbacks is to reduce peak plasma levels of 9-delta-tetrahydrocannabinol and counteract psychoactivity with higher than naturally occurring proportions of a second cannabinoid, cannabidiol.

Sativex® oromucosal spray (1:1 ratio of 9-delta-tetrahydrocannabinol/cannabidiol) has recently been approved in a number of EU countries and elsewhere for use in patients with MS-related spasticity who are resistant to treatment with other antispasticity medications.

In clinical trials, Sativex provided initial relief of spasticity symptoms within the first 4 weeks of treatment (trial period) in up to about half of patients resistant to other available oral antispasticity medications and demonstrated clinically significant improvement in spasticity (30% or higher reduction from baseline) in three-quarters of the initial responders. Adverse events were limited mainly to mild or moderate cases of somnolence and dizziness.

Under everyday clinical practice conditions, Sativex at a mean daily dose of <7 sprays/day, was shown to relieve spasticity in about 70% of patients previously resistant to treatment.

Clear improvements were also noted in associated symptoms such as sleep disturbances, bladder problems, loss of mobility and cramps…

Follow-up studies in Sativex responders support continued benefit without the need to increase doses for at least 1 year.

Sativex appears to be a promising solution for a meaningful proportion of patients with MS-related spasticity who have inadequate response to current antispasticity medications.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24289844