“‘Clearly in the test tube cannabinoids have the ability to block at least one of the probable causal mechanisms in Alzheimer’s disease and so become a potential treatment or preventative agent that needs to be tested in humans.”
Dr Richard Harvey, research director of the Alzheimer’s Society
Read more: http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/news_article.php?newsID=123
“For those who have inhaled, there may be some good news: Marijuana use may cut the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease by reducing inflammation in the brain…
The findings may explain studies showing those who regularly used marijuana in the 1960s and 1970s are now less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than their non-smoking contemporaries.
Under a National Institutes of Health grant, researchers used a synthetic drug similar to marijuana to treat rats with brain inflammation typically associated with Alzheimer’s disease, a form of dementia that afflicts 4.5 million people in the United States alone.”
Read more: http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2006/10/19/marijuana_hea.html
The findings showed that “cannabinoids work both to prevent inflammation and to protect the brain,” says researcher Maria de Ceballos in a news release. That “may set the stage for [cannabinoids’] use as a therapeutic approach for [Alzheimer’s disease].”
The cannabinoids completely prevented activation of cells that trigger inflammation. These cells gather near plaque and are believed to be involved in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
“Our results indicate that cannabinoid receptors are important in the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease and that cannabinoids succeed in preventing the neurodegenerative process occurring in the disease,” write the researchers in the journal.”
Read more: http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news/20050223/marijuana-ingredient-may-help-alzheimers
“New clues about Alzheimer’s disease have emerged from a Spanish study of marijuana. The drug’s active ingredients — cannabinoids — help prevent brain problems seen in Alzheimer’s, say the scientists.
The new study didn’t test cannabinoids on people living with Alzheimer’s disease. Instead, the researchers focused on human brain tissue samples and conducted cannabinoid experiments on rats.
The findings showed that “cannabinoids work both to prevent inflammation and to protect the brain,” says researcher Maria de Ceballos in a news release. That “may set the stage for [cannabinoids’] use as a therapeutic approach for [Alzheimer’s disease].””
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,148518,00.html
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,148518,00.html#ixzz2HIrp1uDH
“New evidence from animal models suggests marijuana may contain compounds that slow the memory loss associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Older rats treated with a synthetic chemical similar to marijuana significantly improved their ability to navigate a maze. Researchers believe the strong anti-inflammatory effects of marijuana slow Alzheimer’s progression.”
“The link between chronic inflammation and the progression of Alzheimer’s is compelling, said Gary Wenk, a study co-author and a professor of psychology at Ohio State University.
“Inflammation in the brain is part of aging,” Wenk said. “It happens to almost all of us as we age. But in some cases, this inflammation gets out of hand and causes serious damage.”
Treatment with a synthetic compound similar to marijuana reduced inflammation in older rats in addition to making the animals “smarter,” said Wenk, who is also a professor of neuroscience and molecular virology, immunology and medical genetics.
“The compound substantially improved the memories of the older rats,” he said. “These animals were able to hold on to key details of a specific task. Untreated older rats, on the other hand, were not.”
The researchers presented their findings at the annual Society for Neuroscience meeting.
Evidence suggests that people who regularly smoked marijuana in the 1960s and 1970s rarely develop Alzheimer’s disease, said Wenk, adding that researchers are eager to develop a drug with the anti-inflammatory properties of marijuana, but without the drug’s psychoactive effects.”
Read more: http://psychcentral.com/news/2006/10/23/marijuana-may-slow-alzheimers-memory-loss/350.html
“Instead of throwing sick people in jail for medicating with cannabis we need to study its benefits.”
“A compound derived from marijuana might one day help fight the memory loss associated with Alzheimer’s disease, a new study suggests.
“Researchers have shown that a synthetic drug similar to cannabis can help older rats perform better on a spatial memory task.
Over a period of three weeks, Gary Wenk at Ohio State University in Columbus, US, and colleagues injected the brains of young and old rats with an inflammatory molecule that created an immune response in the animals’ brains which mimics that seen in Alzheimer’s patients.
During the same period the researchers also injected some of the rats with a synthetic drug similar to cannabis, called WIN-55212-2, which stimulates the brain receptors that normally respond to cannabis compounds.
The rats that received WIN-55212-2 in both age groups found the platform faster than their control counterparts. However, the difference between the treated and untreated animals’ performance was greatest among the older rats. The brains of rats receiving the synthetic drug also showed less sign of inflammation.
The results are impressive particularly because of the low dose of drug used in the experiment, comments Ken Mackie at the University of Washington in Seattle, US, who was not involved in the study.
“They gave them a relatively low dose, even for a rat.” Mackie says that this aspect of the study makes the prospect of developing a similar treatment for humans with Alzheimer’s disease “more promising”.
Wenk cautions, however, that WIN-55212-2 still causes psychoactive effects similar to cannabis, and as such is not yet a candidate for human use. Researchers are currently trying to develop a similar drug that could control inflammation in the brain without a concomitant high.”
Read more: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn10330-hope-for-cannabisbased-drug-for-alzheimers.html
“The more research they do, the more evidence Ohio State University scientists find that specific elements of marijuana can be good for the aging brain by reducing inflammation there and possibly even stimulating the formation of new brain cells.
The research suggests that the development of a legal drug that contains certain properties similar to those in marijuana might help prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Though the exact cause of Alzheimer’s remains unknown, chronic inflammation in the brain is believed to contribute to memory impairment.
Any new drug’s properties would resemble those of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the main psychoactive substance in the cannabis plant, but would not share its high-producing effects.
.”Could people smoke marijuana to prevent Alzheimer’s disease if the disease is in their family? We’re not saying that, but it might actually work. What we are saying is it appears that a safe, legal substance that mimics those important properties of marijuana can work on receptors in the brain to prevent memory impairments in aging. So that’s really hopeful,” Wenk said”
Read more: http://phys.org/news146320102.html
“When the State of Oregon first legalized Medical Marijuana I disbelieved and was astonished at the diverse medical conditions that State DHS said were acceptable conditions for a permit to use: Cancer, Glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s, Cachexia/Anorexia, Severe pain, Severe nausea, Seizures and Muscle spasms.
I found out soon after I started seeing patients for marijuana permits that the DHS was far too modest about this surprisingly effective medicine. As I continued to see more than 4000 patients I was truly amazed at the diversity of diseases for which marijuana was helpful and more so than standard medicine.”-
Dr. Phil Leveque
Read more: http://www.salem-news.com/articles/may262009/marijuana_treatments_pl_5-26-09.php