Cannabinoid Treatments
Cannabis preparations have been known as therapeutic agents against various diseases for millennia. The psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) was found to be the principal mediator of the effects of cannabis. Synthetic THC is prescribed today, under the INN dronabinol or the brand name Marinol, to treat vomiting and for enhancement of appetite, mainly in AIDS patients.
Several synthetic cannabinoids have been shown to bind to the CB2 receptor with a higher affinity than to the CB1 receptor. Most of these compounds exhibit only modest selectivity. One of the described compounds, a classical THC-type cannabinoid, L-759,656, in which the phenolic group is blocked as a methyl ether, has a CB1/CB2 binding ratio > 1000. The pharmacology of these agonists has yet to be described.
Certain tumors, especially gliomas, express CB2 receptors. Guzman and coworkers have shown that Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol and WIN-55,212-2, two non-selective cannabinoid agonists, induce the regression or eradication of malignant brain tumors in rats and mice. CB2 selective agonists are effective in the treatment of pain, various inflammatory diseases in different animal models, osteoporosis and atherosclerosis. CB1 selective antagonists have previously been used for weight reduction and smoking cessation (see Rimonabant). Activation of CB1 provides neuroprotection after brain injury.
Several studies, using animal models, have concluded that HU210 which is a cannabinoid 100 to 800 times more potent than marijuana compounds might have the ability to prevent Alzheimer's disease. But a more recent study using mice carrying human genetic mutations that cause Alzheimer's disease found that those same cannabinoides have no effect on Alzheimer's disease and have negative consequences for cognitive function, including causing brain cell death.
Read more about this topic: Cannabinoid Receptor