Monthly Archives: May 2023

Goods and bads of endocannabinoid system as a therapeutic target: Lessons learned after 30 years

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Pharmacological Reviews: 75 (3)

“The cannabis derivative marijuana is the most widely used recreational drug in the Western world, that is consumed by an estimated 83 million individuals (~3% of the world population). In recent years, there has been a marked transformation in society regarding the risk perception of cannabis, driven by its legalization and medical use in many states in the USA and worldwide.

Compelling research evidence and the FDA cannabis-derived cannabidiol approval for severe childhood epilepsy have confirmed the large therapeutic potential of cannabidiol itself, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other plant-derived cannabinoids (phytocannabinoids). Of note, our body has a complex endocannabinoid system (ECS) – made of receptors, metabolic enzymes and transporters – that is also regulated by phytocannabinoids.

The first endocannabinoid to be discovered 30 years ago was anandamide (N-arachidonoyl-ethanolamine); since then, distinct elements of ECS have been the target of drug design programs aimed at curing (or at least slowing down) a number of human diseases, both in the central nervous system and at the periphery. Here, a critical review of our knowledge of the goods and bads of ECS as a therapeutic target are presented, in order to define the benefits of ECS-active phytocannabinoids and ECS-oriented synthetic drugs for human health.

Significance Statement The endocannabinoid system plays important roles everywhere in our body and is either involved in mediating key processes of central and peripheral diseases or represents a therapeutic target for treatment. Understanding structure, function, and pharmacology of the components of this complex system, and in particular of key receptors (like CB1R and CB2R) and metabolic enzymes (like FAAH and MAGL), will advance our understanding of endocannabinoid signaling and activity at molecular, cellular, and system levels providing new opportunities to treat patients.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37164640/

https://pharmrev.aspetjournals.org/content/early/2023/05/09/pharmrev.122.000600

Antitumor mechanism of cannabidiol hidden behind cancer hallmarks

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Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Reviews on Cancer

“Cannabinoids have been utilized for recreational and therapeutic purposes for over 4,000 years. As the primary ingredient in exogenous cannabinoids, Cannabidiol (CBD) has drawn a lot of interest from researchers due to its negligible psychotropic side effects and potential tumor-suppressing properties. However, the obscure mechanisms that underlie them remain a mystery. Complex biological mechanisms are involved in the progression of cancer, and malignancies have a variety of acquired biological capabilities, including sustained proliferation, death evasion, neovascularization, tissue invasion and metastasis, immune escape, metabolic reprogramming, induction of tumor-associated inflammation, cancerous stemness and genomic instability. Nowadays, the role of CBD hidden in these hallmarks is gradually revealed. Nevertheless, flaws or inconsistencies in the recent studies addressing the anti-cancer effects of CBD still exist. The purpose of this review is to evaluate the potential mechanisms underlying the role of CBD in a range of tumor-acquired biological capabilities. We propose potential drugs that may have a synergistic effect with CBD and provide optional directions for future research.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37164234/

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0304419X23000549?via%3Dihub

Assessment of Medical Cannabis and Health-Related Quality of Life

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“Importance: The use of cannabis as a medicine is becoming increasingly prevalent. Given the diverse range of conditions being treated with medical cannabis, as well as the vast array of products and dose forms available, clinical evidence incorporating patient-reported outcomes may help determine safety and efficacy.

Objective: To assess whether patients using medical cannabis report improvements in health-related quality of life over time.

Design, setting, and participants: This retrospective case series study was conducted at a network of specialist medical clinics (Emerald Clinics) located across Australia. Participants were patients who received treatment for any indication at any point between December 2018 and May 2022. Patients were followed up every mean (SD) 44.6 (30.1) days. Data for up to 15 follow-ups were reported. Statistical analysis was conducted from August to September 2022.

Exposure: Medical cannabis. Product types and cannabinoid content varied over time in accordance with the treating physician’s clinical judgement.

Main outcomes and measures: The main outcome measure was health-related quality of life as assessed using the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) questionnaire.

Results: In this case series of 3148 patients, 1688 (53.6%) were female; 820 (30.2%) were employed; and the mean (SD) age was 55.9 (18.7) years at baseline before treatment. Chronic noncancer pain was the most common indication for treatment (68.6% [2160 of 3148]), followed by cancer pain (6.0% [190 of 3148]), insomnia (4.8% [152 of 3148]), and anxiety (4.2% [132 of 3148]). After commencing treatment with medical cannabis, patients reported significant improvements relative to baseline on all 8 domains of the SF-36, and these improvements were mostly sustained over time. After controlling for potential confounders in a regression model, treatment with medical cannabis was associated with an improvement of 6.60 (95% CI, 4.57-8.63) points to 18.31 (95% CI, 15.86-20.77) points in SF-36 scores, depending on the domain (all P < .001). Effect sizes (Cohen d) ranged from 0.21 to 0.72. A total of 2919 adverse events were reported, including 2 that were considered serious.

Conclusions and relevance: In this case series study, patients using medical cannabis reported improvements in health-related quality of life, which were mostly sustained over time. Adverse events were rarely serious but common, highlighting the need for caution with prescribing medical cannabis.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37159196/

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2804653

Neuroprotective Effect of a Pharmaceutical Extract of Cannabis with High Content on CBD Against Rotenone in Primary Cerebellar Granule Cell Cultures and the Relevance of Formulations

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“Introduction: Preclinical research supports the benefits of pharmaceutical cannabis-based extracts for treating different medical conditions (e.g., epilepsy); however, their neuroprotective potential has not been widely investigated. 

Materials and Methods: Using primary cultures of cerebellar granule cells, we evaluated the neuroprotective activity of Epifractan (EPI), a cannabis-based medicinal extract containing a high level of cannabidiol (CBD), components like terpenoids and flavonoids, trace levels of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol, and the acid form of CBD. We determined the ability of EPI to counteract the rotenone-induced neurotoxicity by analyzing cell viability and morphology of neurons and astrocytes by immunocytochemical assays. The effect of EPI was compared with XALEX, a plant-derived and highly purified CBD formulation (XAL), and pure CBD crystals (CBD). 

Results: The results revealed that EPI induced a significant reduction in the rotenone-induced neurotoxicity in a wide range of concentrations without causing neurotoxicity per se. EPI showed a similar effect to XAL suggesting that no additive or synergistic interactions between individual substances present in EPI occurred. In contrast, CBD did show a different profile to EPI and XAL because a neurotoxic effect per se was observed at higher concentrations assayed. Medium-chain triglyceride oil used in EPI formulation could explain this difference. 

Conclusion: Our data support a neuroprotective effect of EPI that may provide neuroprotection in different neurodegenerative processes. The results highlight the role of CBD as the active component of EPI but also support the need for an appropriate formulation to dilute pharmaceutical cannabis-based products that could be critical to avoid neurotoxicity at very high doses.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37155642/

https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/can.2022.0289

Cannabidiol for musculoskeletal regenerative medicine

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“Chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain is one of the most prevalent causes, which lead patients to a physician’s office. The most common disorders affecting MSK structures are osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, back pain, and myofascial pain syndrome, which are all responsible for major pain and physical disability.

Although there are many known management strategies currently in practice, phytotherapeutic compounds have recently begun to rise in the medical community, especially cannabidiol (CBD). This natural, non-intoxicating molecule derived from the cannabis plant has shown interesting results in many preclinical studies and some clinical settings. CBD plays vital roles in human health that go well beyond the classic immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, and antinociceptive properties. Recent studies demonstrated that CBD also improves cell proliferation and migration, especially in mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs).

The foremost objective of this review article is to discuss the therapeutic potential of CBD in the context of MSK regenerative medicine. Numerous studies listed in the literature indicate that CBD possesses a significant capacity to modulate mammalian tissue to attenuate and reverse the notorious hallmarks of chronic musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The most of the research included in this review report common findings like immunomodulation and stimulation of cell activity associated with tissue regeneration, especially in human MSCs.

CBD is considered safe and well tolerated as no serious adverse effects were reported. CBD promotes many positive effects which can manage detrimental alterations brought on by chronic MSDs. Since the application of CBD for MSK health is still undergoing expansion, additional randomized clinical trials are warranted to further clarify its efficacy and to understand its cellular mechanisms.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37158062/

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/15353702231162086

Therapeutic targeting of the tumor microenvironments with cannabinoids and their analogs: Update on clinical trials

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“Cancer is a major global public health concern that affects both industrialized and developing nations. Current cancer chemotherapeutic options are limited by side effects, but plant-derived alternatives and their derivatives offer the possibilities of enhanced treatment response and reduced side effects.

A plethora of recently published articles have focused on treatments based on cannabinoids and cannabinoid analogs and reported that they positively affect healthy cell growth and reverse cancer-related abnormalities by targeting aberrant tumor microenvironments (TMEs), lowering tumorigenesis, preventing metastasis, and/or boosting the effectiveness of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Furthermore, TME modulating systems are receiving much interest in the cancer immunotherapy field because it has been shown that TMEs have significant impacts on tumor progression, angiogenesis, invasion, migration, epithelial to mesenchymal transition, metastasis and development of drug resistance.

Here, we have reviewed the effective role of cannabinoids, their analogs and cannabinoid nano formulations on the cellular components of TME (endothelial cells, pericytes, fibroblast and immune cells) and how efficiently it retards the progression of carcinogenesis is discussed. The article summarizes the existing research on the molecular mechanisms of cannabinoids regulation of the TME and finally highlights the human studies on cannabinoids’ active interventional clinical trials.

The conclusion outlines the need for future research involving clinical trials of cannabinoids to demonstrate their efficacy and activity as a treatment/prevention for various types of human malignancies.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37146933/

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013935123006540?via%3Dihub

Impact of Cannabinoid Receptors in the Design of Therapeutic Agents against Human Ailments

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“The cannabinoid (CB) signalling cascade is widely located in the human body and is as-sociated with several pathophysiological processes. The endocannabinoid system comprises canna-binoid receptors CB1 and CB2, which belong to G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). CB1 recep-tors are primarily located on nerve terminals, prohibiting neurotransmitter release, whereas CB2 are present predominantly on immune cells, causing cytokine release. The activation of CB system con-tributes to the development of several diseases which might have lethal consequences, such as CNS disorders, cancer, obesity, and psychotic disorders on human health. Clinical evidence revealed that CB1 receptors are associated with CNS ailments such as Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and multiple sclerosis, whereas CB2 receptors are primarily connected with immune disorders, pain, inflammation, etc. Therefore, cannabinoid receptors have been proved to be promising targets in therapeutics and drug discovery. Experimental and clinical outcomes have disclosed the success sto-ry of CB antagonists, and several research groups have framed newer compounds with the binding potential to these receptors. In the presented review, we have summarized variously reported heter-ocycles with CB receptor agonistic/antagonistic properties against CNS disorders, cancer, obesity, and other complications. The structural activity relationship aspects have been keenly described along with enzymatic assay data. The specific outcomes of molecular docking studies have also been highlighted to get insights into the binding patterns of the molecules to CB receptors.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37132103/

https://www.eurekaselect.com/article/131385

Anti-inflammatory effects of CBD in human microglial cell line infected with HIV-1

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“Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is associated with a chronic inflammatory stage and continuous activation of inflammasome pathway. We studied the anti-inflammatory effects of the compound cannabidiol (CBD) in comparison with Δ (9)-tetrahydrocannabinol [Δ(9)-THC] in human microglial cells (HC69.5) infected with HIV.

Our results showed that CBD reduced the production of various inflammatory cytokines and chemokines such as MIF, SERPIN E1, IL-6, IL-8, GM-CSF, MCP-1, CXCL1, CXCL10, and IL-1 β compared to Δ(9)-THC treatment. In addition, CBD led to the deactivation of caspase 1, reduced NLRP3 gene expression which play a crucial role in the inflammasome cascade. Furthermore, CBD significantly reduced the expression of HIV.

Our study demonstrated that CBD has anti-inflammatory properties and exhibits significant therapeutic potential against HIV-1 infections and neuroinflammation.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37147420/

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-32927-4

Unveiling behavioral and molecular neuroadaptations related to the antidepressant action of cannabidiol in the unpredictable chronic mild stress model

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“Introduction: This study aims to further characterize cannabidiol’s pharmacological and molecular profile as an antidepressant. 

Methods: Effects of cannabidiol (CBD), alone or combined with sertraline (STR), were evaluated in male CD1 mice (n = 48) exposed to an unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS) procedure. Once the model was established (4 weeks), mice received CBD (20 mg·kg-1, i.p.), STR (10 mg·kg-1, p.o.) or its combination for 28 days. The efficacy of CBD was evaluated using the light-dark box (LDB), elevated plus maze (EPM), tail suspension (TS), sucrose consumption (SC) and novel object recognition (NOR) tests. Gene expression changes in the serotonin transporter, 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A receptors, BDNF, VGlut1 and PPARdelta, were evaluated in the dorsal raphe, hippocampus (Hipp) and amygdala by real-time PCR. Besides, BDNF, NeuN and caspase-3 immunoreactivity were assessed in the Hipp. 

Results: CBD exerted anxiolytic and antidepressant-like effects at 4 and 7 days of treatment in the LDB and TS tests, respectively. In contrast, STR required 14 days of treatment to show efficacy. CBD improved cognitive impairment and anhedonia more significantly than STR. CBD plus STR showed a similar effect than CBD in the LBD, TST and EPM. However, a worse outcome was observed in the NOR and SI tests. CBD modulates all molecular disturbances induced by UCMS, whereas STR and the combination could not restore 5-HT1A, BDNF and PPARdelta in the Hipp. 

Discussion: These results pointed out CBD as a potential new antidepressant with faster action and efficiency than STR. Particular attention should be given to the combination of CBD with current SSRI since it appears to produce a negative impact on treatment.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37144214/

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2023.1171646/full

Phytocannabinoids as Potential Multitargeting Neuroprotectants in Alzheimer’s Disease

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“The Endocannabinoid System (ECS) is a well-studied system that influences a variety of physiological activities. It is evident that the ECS plays a significant role in metabolic activities and also has some neuroprotective properties.

In this review, we emphasize several plant-derived cannabinoids such as β-caryophyllene (BCP), Cannabichromene (CBC), Cannabigerol (CBG), Cannabidiol (CBD), and Cannabinol (CBN), which are known to have distinctive modulation abilities of ECS. In Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the activation of ECS may provide neuroprotection by modulating certain neuronal circuitry pathways through complex molecular cascades.

The present article also discusses the implications of cannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2) as well as cannabinoid enzymes (FAAH and MAGL) modulators in AD. Specifically, CBR1 or CB2R modulations result in reduced inflammatory cytokines such as IL-2 and IL-6, as well as a reduction in microglial activation, which contribute to an inflammatory response in neurons. Furthermore, naturally occurring cannabinoid metabolic enzymes (FAAH and MAGL) inhibit the NLRP3 inflammasome complex, which may offer significant neuroprotection.

In this review, we explored the multi-targeted neuroprotective properties of phytocannabinoids and their possible modulations, which could offer significant benefits in limiting AD.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37132109/

https://www.eurekaselect.com/article/131371