British Journal of Pharmacology Archives

Study: THCA has “Potent Neuroprotective Activity”

September 13, 2017

According to a new study, Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol acid (THCA) has potent neuroprotective activity which may help treat Huntington´s Disease and other neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases.

“Phytocannabinoids are produced in Cannabis sativa L. in acidic form and are decarboxylated upon heating, processing, and storage”, states the abstract of the study, published by the British Journal of Pharmacology and the U.S. National Institute of Health. “While the biological effects of decarboxylated cannabinoids such as Δ⁹ -tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ⁹ -THC) have been extensively investigated, the bioactivity of Δ⁹ -THCA is largely unknown, despite its occurrence in different Cannabis preparations.” The aim of this study “was to determine whether Δ⁹ -THCA modulates the PPARγ pathway and has neuroprotective activity”.

For the study; “The effects of six phytocannabinoids on PPARγ binding and transcriptional activity were investigated.” In doing so, researchers found that;

Study: THCA May Treat Neurodegenerative and Neuroinflammatory Diseases

August 31, 2017

According to a new study, tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA), a compound found in cannabis, may be useful in treating neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases.

“While the biological effects of decarboxylated cannabinoids such as Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ⁹-THC) have been extensively investigated, the bioactivity of Δ⁹-THCA is largely unknown, despite its occurrence in different Cannabis preparations”, states the study, published in the British Journal of Pharmacology. “The aim of this study was to determine whether Δ⁹-THCA modulates the PPARγ pathway and has neuroprotective activity”.

For the study; “The effects of six phytocannabinoids on PPARγ binding and transcriptional activity were investigated. The effect of Δ⁹-THCA on mitochondrial biogenesis and PGC-1α expression was investigated in N2a cells.” The neuroprotective effect “was analysed in STHdh^Q111/Q111 cells expressing a mutated form of the huntingtin protein, and in N2a cells infected with an adenovirus carrying human huntingtin containing 94 polyQ repeats (mHtt-q94).” In vivo neuroprotective activity of Δ⁹-THCA “was investigated in mice intoxicated with the mitochondrial toxin 3-nitropropionic acid (3-NP).”

Study: Cannabidiol (CBD) May Help Treat Anxiety-Related and Substance Abuse Disorders.

March 10, 2017

Cannabidiol (CBD), a cannabis compounds, may be useful in treating anxiety-related disorders as well a substance abuse disorders, according to a new study,

“[C]annabidiol, the main non-psychotomimetic phytocannabinoid found in Cannabis sativa, reduces anxiety”, states the abstract of the study, published by the British Journal of Pharmacology and the U.S. National Institute of Health. “There is also accumulating evidence from animal studies investigating the effects of cannabidiol on fear memory processing indicating that it reduces learned fear in paradigms that are translationally relevant to phobias and post-traumatic stress disorder.”

The abstract continues; “Cannabidiol does so by reducing fear expression acutely and by disrupting fear memory reconsolidation and enhancing fear extinction, both of which can result in a lasting reduction of learned fear. Recent studies have also begun to elucidate the effects of cannabidiol on drug memory expression using paradigms with translational relevance to addiction.

Cannabinoids May Protect Against Essential Tremor, New Study Finds

August 23, 2016

A new study published by the British Journal of Pharmacology has found that cannabinoids may protect against the behavioral disturbances caused by an essential tremor.

“Essential tremor (ET) is a neurological disorder with unknown etiology”, states the study’s abstract. “Its symptoms include cerebellar motor disturbances, cognitive and personality changes, hearing and olfactory deficits.”

For the study researchers “set out to establish the effects of cannabinoid type 1 receptor agonism [such as cannabinoids] and antagonism in an established rodent model of ET using a battery of accepted behaviour assays in order to determine risk and therapeutic potential of endocannabinoid system modulation in ET.”

THC Can Suppress Staph-Induced Pulmonary Inflammation, According to New Study

December 2, 2014December 1, 2014

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) can serve as a suppressor of Staphylococcal enterotoxin B-induced pulmonary inflammation, reducing the morality rate of the ailment, according to a study published in the British Journal of Pharmacology.

According to researchers; “The superantigen Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) is a potent activator of Vβ8+T-cells which results in the clonal expansion of ∼30% of the T-cell pool. Consequently, this leads to the substantial release of inflammatory cytokines, induction of toxic shock, and eventually death.

New Study Finds Cannabinoids Can Combat Breast Cancer

August 22, 2014June 14, 2014

A nearly 10-year long study conducted by researchers at California Pacific Medical Center’s Research Institute, and published this month by the British Journal of Pharmacology, has found that cannabinoids can combat breast cancer progression.

“The psychoactive cannabinoid Δ⁹ -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and the non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) can both reduce cancer progression each through distinct antitumor pathways”, begins the study’s abstract. “Our goal was to discover a compound that could efficiently target both cannabinoid antitumor pathways.”

Cannabis May Treat Neurodegeneration According to New Study

December 20, 2014May 10, 2014

A new study published in the British Journal of Pharmacology has found that cannabis may treat neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.

“In an increasingly ageing population, the incidence of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and Huntington’s disease are rising”, according to the study. “While the aetiologies of these disorders are different, a number of common mechanisms that underlie their neurodegenerative components have been elucidated; namely neuroinflammation, excitotoxicity, mitochondrial dysfunction and reduced trophic support. Current therapies focus on treatment of the symptoms and attempt to delay the progression of these diseases but there is currently no cure.” It continues; “Modulation of the endogenous cannabinoid system is emerging as a potentially viable option in the treatment of neurodegeneration. Endocannabinoid signalling has been found to be altered in many neurodegenerative disorders.”

New Study: CBD Can Protect Breast Cancer Patients From Chemotherapy-Induced Side Effects

November 22, 2013November 20, 2013

A new study published by the British Journal of Pharmacology has found that not only can CBD (cannabidiol, a cannabis compound) protect breast cancer patients against neurotoxicity and pain associated with chemotherapy drugs, it can actually increase the cancer-fighting capabilities of these drugs.

According to researchers; “Paclitaxel (PAC) is associated with a chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain (CIPN) state that can lead to the cessation of treatment in late stage breast cancer patients, even in the absence of alternate therapies.’ They state that; “Indeed, to date no one drug or drug class is considered to be effective for reversal of CIPN.”

New Harvard Study: Cannabis Can Reverse Effects of HIV-Associated Dementia

October 29, 2013October 26, 2013

A new study published this week by the U.S. National Institute of Health, as well as the British Journal of Pharmacology, has found that activation of the brain’s cannabinoid receptors – something which cannabis does naturally – provides neuroprotective effects that can reverse impaired neurogenesis caused by HIV-related dementia.

Cannabis Can Stop Seizures, Treat Epilepsy, According to New Study

October 16, 2013October 16, 2013

A new study published in this month’s issue of the British Journal of Pharmacology has found that cannabis can stop seizures due to its “significant anticonvulsant effects”.

For the study researchers used an extract made from the whole cannabis plant, and used the substance on a number of animal models – using rats and mice – and found that the extract was able to effectively stop seizures.

According to a new study, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol acid (THCA) has potent neuroprotective activity which may help treat Huntington´s Disease and other neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases.

According to a new study, tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA), a compound found in cannabis, may be useful in treating neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases.

Cannabidiol (CBD), a cannabis compounds, may be useful in treating anxiety-related disorders as well a substance abuse disorders, according to a new study,

According to a new study, Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol acid (THCA) has potent neuroprotective activity which may help treat Huntington´s Disease and other neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases.