Pot is good for you? Marijuana fights the superbugs
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Category Archives: Staphyloccus infections
Fact: Cannabis Kills MRSA, Disrupts Prion Diseases
“Marijuana is a potent antibiotic that can kill methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and disrupt the progression of prion diseases such as Mad Cow disease and Creutzfeld-Jakob disease — just don’t expect the federal government to tell you any of this.”
“Scientists from Italy and the United Kingdom reported in the August 2007 issue of the Journal of Natural Products that the main active ingredient in weed, THC, as well as four other pot molecules “showed potent antibacterial activity against six different strains of MRSA of clinical relevance.”
Pot also stops prions, a type of protein that can cause neurodegenerative diseases that are invariably fatal. Once prions get into a brain they replicate rapidly and shred brain tissue “resulting in a ‘spongiform’ appearance on post-mortem histological examination of neural tissue.”
In 2007, American and French researchers reported that pot molecule cannabidiol “prevents prion accumulation and protects neurons against prion toxicity” in the Journal of Neuroscience.
Cannabidiol inhibited prion accumulation in mouse and sheep prion disease cell cultures and inhibited prion formation in the brain of infected mice given injections of CBD. “The authors conclude that CBD likely represents a new class of anti-prion drugs.””
“Antibacterial cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa: a structure-activity study.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18681481
“Nonpsychoactive Cannabidiol Prevents Prion Accumulation and Protects Neurons against Prion Toxicity” http://www.jneurosci.org/content/27/36/9537.full
Marijuana Kills MRSA and Inhibits Prions That Cause Neurodegenerative Disease; Still Recognized by Feds As a Dangerous Drug
“Research indicates that marijuana could effectively fight off MRSA, as well as prions — the proteins that cause mad cow disease and Creutzfeld-Jakob disease.”
“New research reveals that several marijuana ingredients exhibit a potent antibiotic capacity in cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections as well as the ability to fight off proteins called prions that can lead to Mad Cow disease and Creutzfeld-Jakob disease (CDJ).”
More: http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/17941/20130730/marijuana-mrsa-prions-mad-cow-disease.htm
Cannabis Compounds Reduce Multi-Drug Resistant Infections
“Cannabis Science, Inc. Dr. Robert Melamede, PhD., Director and Chief Science Officer, reported to the Board on the current state of research into the use of natural plant cannabinoids to reduce the spread of drug-resistant bacteria, including methicillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus (MRSA), and the prospects for development of topical whole-cannabis treatments.
According to studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association and by the Center for Disease Control in 2007, MRSA is responsible for more than 18,500 hospital-stay related deaths each year, and increased direct healthcare costs of as much as $9.7 billion.
Dr. Melamede stated, “Research into use of whole cannabis extracts and multi-cannabinoid compounds has provided the scientific rationale for medical marijuana’s efficacy in treating some of the most troubling diseases mankind now faces, including infectious diseases such as the flu and HIV, autoimmune diseases such as ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), multiple sclerosis, arthritis, and diabetes, neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s, stroke and brain injury, as well as numerous forms of cancer. One common element of these diseases is that patients often suffer extended hospital stays, risking development of various Staphyloccus infections including MRSA. A topical, whole-cannabis treatment for these infections is a functional complement to our cannabis extract-based lozenge.””
More: http://www.drugs.com/clinical_trials/cannabis-compounds-reduce-multi-resistant-infections-7080.html
Marijuana Ingredients Show Promise In Battling Superbugs
“Substances in marijuana show promise for fighting deadly drug-resistant bacterial infections, including so-called “superbugs,” without causing the drug’s mood-altering effects, scientists in Italy and the United Kingdom are reporting.
Besides serving as infection-fighting drugs, the substances also could provide a more environmentally-friendly alternative to synthetic antibacterial substances now widely used in personal care items, including soaps and cosmetics, they say.
In the new study, Giovanni Appendino and colleagues point out that scientists have known for years that marijuana contains antibacterial substances. However, little research has been done on those ingredients, including studies on their ability to fight antibiotic resistant infections, the scientists say.
To close that gap, researchers tested five major marijuana ingredients termed cannabinoids on different strains of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a “superbug” increasingly resistant to antibiotics.
All five substances showed potent germ-killing activity against these drug-resistant strains, as did some synthetic non-natural cannabinoids, they say. The scientists also showed that these substances appear to kill bacteria by different mechanisms than conventional antibiotics, making them more likely to avoid bacterial resistance, the scientists note. At least two of the substances have no known mood-altering effects, suggesting that they could be developed into marijuana-based drugs without causing a “high.””
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080908103045.htm
Biologically active cannabinoids from high-potency Cannabis sativa.
“Nine new cannabinoids (1-9) were isolated from a high-potency variety of Cannabis sativa. Their structures were identified as (+/-)-4-acetoxycannabichromene (1), (+/-)-3”-hydroxy-Delta((4”,5”))-cannabichromene (2), (-)-7-hydroxycannabichromane (3), (-)-7R-cannabicoumarononic acid A (4), 5-acetyl-4-hydroxycannabigerol (5), 4-acetoxy-2-geranyl-5-hydroxy-3-n-pentylphenol (6), 8-hydroxycannabinol (7), 8-hydroxycannabinolic acid A (8), and 2-geranyl-5-hydroxy-3-n-pentyl-1,4-benzoquinone (9) through 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy, GC-MS, and HRESIMS. The known sterol beta-sitosterol-3-O-beta-d-glucopyranosyl-6′-acetate was isolated for the first time from cannabis. Compounds 6 and 7 displayed significant antibacterial and antifungal activities, respectively, while 5 displayed strong antileishmanial activity.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19344127
“Biologically Active Cannabinoids from High-Potency Cannabis sativa” http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/np900067k
Antibacterial cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa: a structure-activity study.
“Marijuana (Cannabis sativa) has long been known to contain antibacterial cannabinoids, whose potential to address antibiotic resistance has not yet been investigated. All five major cannabinoids (cannabidiol (1b), cannabichromene (2), cannabigerol (3b), Delta (9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (4b), and cannabinol (5)) showed potent activity against a variety of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains of current clinical relevance.
Activity was remarkably tolerant to the nature of the prenyl moiety, to its relative position compared to the n-pentyl moiety (abnormal cannabinoids), and to carboxylation of the resorcinyl moiety (pre-cannabinoids). Conversely, methylation and acetylation of the phenolic hydroxyls, esterification of the carboxylic group of pre-cannabinoids, and introduction of a second prenyl moiety were all detrimental for antibacterial activity.
Taken together, these observations suggest that the prenyl moiety of cannabinoids serves mainly as a modulator of lipid affinity for the olivetol core, a per se poorly active antibacterial pharmacophore, while their high potency definitely suggests a specific, but yet elusive, mechanism of activity.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18681481
“Antibacterial Cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa: A Structure−Activity Study” http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/np8002673
Antibacterial activity of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol.
“The minimum inhibiting concentrations (MIC) of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) for staphylococci and streptococci in broth are in the range of 1-5 mug/ml.
In the same range, both compounds are also bactericidal.
In media containing 4% serum or 5% blood the antibacterial activity is strongly reduced (MIC 50 mug/ml). Gram-negative bacteria are resistant to THC and CBD.”
The endocannabinoid system and its therapeutic exploitation.
“The term ‘endocannabinoid’ – originally coined in the mid-1990s after the discovery of membrane receptors for the psychoactive principle in Cannabis, Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol and their endogenous ligands – now indicates a whole signalling system that comprises cannabinoid receptors, endogenous ligands and enzymes for ligand biosynthesis and inactivation. This system seems to be involved in an ever-increasing number of pathological conditions. With novel products already being aimed at the pharmaceutical market little more than a decade since the discovery of cannabinoid receptors, the endocannabinoid system seems to hold even more promise for the future development of therapeutic drugs. We explore the conditions under which the potential of targeting the endocannabinoid system might be realized in the years to come.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15340387
From cannabis to the endocannabinoid system: refocussing attention on potential clinical benefits.
“Cannabis sativa is one of the oldest herbal remedies known to man. Over the past four thousand years, it has been used for the treatment of numerous diseases but due to its psychoactive properties, its current medicinal usage is highly restricted. In this review, we seek to highlight advances made over the last forty years in the understanding of the mechanisms responsible for the effects of cannabis on the human body and how these can potentially be utilized in clinical practice. During this time, the primary active ingredients in cannabis have been isolated, specific cannabinoid receptors have been discovered and at least five endogenous cannabinoid neurotransmitters (endocannabinoids) have been identified. Together, these form the framework of a complex endocannabinoid signalling system that has widespread distribution in the body and plays a role in regulating numerous physiological processes within the body. Cannabinoid ligands are therefore thought to display considerable therapeutic potential and the drive to develop compounds that can be targeted to specific neuronal systems at low enough doses so as to eliminate cognitive side effects remains the ‘holy grail’ of endocannabinoid research.”