STUDY: MARIJUANA SLOWS ALZHEIMER'S DECLINE (2005 pub.)

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STUDY: MARIJUANA SLOWS ALZHEIMER'S DECLINE

New Spanish and Israeli research shows that a synthetic analogue of the active component of marijuana can reduce the inflammation and prevent the mental decline associated with Alzheimer's disease. Although it was conducted on human brain tissue in the lab and in a rat model -- but not in living humans -- the research is regarded as a major step not only in understanding how the brain reacts to Alzheimer's disease, but also in helping to develop novel drugs for Alzheimer's and even Parkinson's disease.

Prof. Raphael Mechoulam, a medicinal chemistry expert who discovered marijuana's active component ( called THC ), conducted the study with researchers at the Cajal Institute and Complutense University in Madrid, led by Maria de Ceballos. The study appears in Wednesday's issue of The Journal of Neuroscience, which is published by the Society for Neuroscience, an organization of more than 36,000 basic scientists and clinicians who study the brain and nervous system.

To show the preventive effects of cannabinoids on Alzheimer's disease, the team first compared the brain tissue of patients who died from Alzheimer's disease with that of healthy people who had died at a similar age. They looked closely at cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2 - proteins to which cannabinoids bind, allowing their effects to be felt - and atmicroglia, which activate the brain s immune response. Micro-glia collect near plaques and, when active, cause inflammation. The researchers found a dramatically reduced functioning of cannabinoid receptors in diseased brain tissue, meaning that patients had lost the capacity to experience cannabinoids' protective effects.

In addition, the researchers showed that cannabinoids prevented cognitive decline through rat experiments. They injected either amyloid ( which leads to cognitive decline ) that had been allowed to aggregate or control proteins into the brains of rats for one week. Other rats were injected with a cannabinoid and either amyloid or a control protein. After two months, the researchers trained the rats over five days to find a platform hidden underwater. Rats treated with the control protein - with or without cannabinoids - and those treated with the amyloid protein and cannabinoid were able to find the platform. Rats treated with amyloid protein alone did not learn how to find the platform.

Meshoullam said that the discovery was important, since most drugs given for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's are work merely against symptoms and not the cause and essence of the neurodegeneration.

for the rest of this article:
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n307/a10.html

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Marijuana's Active Ingredient Shown to
Inhibit Primary Marker of Alzheimer's Disease
Discovery Could Lead to More Effective Treatments

LA JOLLA, CA, August 9, 2006 - Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have found that the active ingredient in marijuana, tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, inhibits the formation of amyloid plaque, the primary pathological marker for Alzheimer's disease. In fact, the study said, THC is "a considerably superior inhibitor of [amyloid plaque] aggregation" to several currently approved drugs for treating the disease.

The study was published online August 9 in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics, a publication of the American Chemical Society. According to the new Scripps Research study, which used both computer modeling and biochemical assays, THC inhibits the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE), which acts as a "molecular chaperone" to accelerate the formation of amyloid plaque in the brains of Alzheimer victims. Although experts disagree on whether the presence of beta-amyloid plaques in those areas critical to memory and cognition is a symptom or cause, it remains a significant hallmark of the disease. With its strong inhibitory abilities, the study said, THC "may provide an improved therapeutic for Alzheimer's disease" that would treat "both the symptoms and progression" of the disease.

"While we are certainly not advocating the use of illegal drugs, these findings offer convincing evidence that THC possesses remarkable inhibitory qualities, especially when compared to AChE inhibitors currently available to patients," said Kim Janda, Ph.D., who is Ely R. Callaway, Jr. Professor of Chemistry at Scripps Research, a member of The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, and director of the Worm Institute of Research and Medicine. "In a test against propidium, one of the most effective inhibitors reported to date, THC blocked AChE-induced aggregation completely, while the propidium did not. Although our study is far from final, it does show that there is a previously unrecognized molecular mechanism through which THC may directly affect the progression of Alzheimer's disease." As the new study points out, any new treatment that could halt or even slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease would have a major impact on the quality of life for patients, as well as reducing the staggering health care costs associated with the disease.

Alzheimer's disease is the leading cause of dementia among the elderly, and the numbers are growing. The Alzheimer's Association estimates 4.5 million Americans have the disease, a figure that could reach as high as 16 million by 2050. A survey by the National Center for Health Statistics noted that half of all nursing home residents have Alzheimer's disease or a related disorder. The costs of caring for Alzheimer's patients are at least $100 billion annually, according to the National Institute on Aging. Over the last two decades, the causes of Alzheimer's disease have been clarified through extensive biochemical and neurobiological studies, leading to an assortment of possible therapeutic strategies including interference with beta amyloid metabolism, the focus of the Scripps Research study.

for the rest of this article:
http://www.pacifier.com/~alive/articles/ca060809.htm

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A Molecular Link between the Active Component of Marijuana and Alzheimer's Disease Pathology (http://marijuanaforalzheimers.blogspot.com/2008/10/molecular-link-between-active-component.html)


The journal of Molecular Pharmaceutics recently published an article about the molecular link between THC and Alzheimer's disease pathology. The abstract is below and a link to the full article is below the article.

A Molecular Link between the Active Component of Marijuana and Alzheimer's Disease Pathology
Lisa M. Eubanks,http://pubs.acs.org/images/entities/dagger.gif Claude J. Rogers,http://pubs.acs.org/images/entities/dagger.gif Albert E. Beuscher IV,http://pubs.acs.org/images/entities/Dagger.gif George F. Koob,http://pubs.acs.org/images/entities/sect.gif Arthur J. Olson,http://pubs.acs.org/images/entities/Dagger.gif Tobin J. Dickerson,http://pubs.acs.org/images/entities/dagger.gif and Kim D. Janda*http://pubs.acs.org/images/entities/dagger.gif
Departments of Chemistry, Immunology, and Molecular Biology, Molecular and Integrated Neurosciences Department, The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, and Worm Institute for Research and Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037
Received June 11, 2006
http://pubs.acs.org/isubscribe/journals/mpohbp/3/i06/figures/mp060066mn00001.gif

Abstract:
Alzheimer's disease is the leading cause of dementia among the elderly, and with the ever-increasing size of this population, cases of Alzheimer's disease are expected to triple over the next 50 years. Consequently, the development of treatments that slow or halt the disease progression have become imperative to both improve the quality of life for patients and reduce the health care costs attributable to Alzheimer's disease. Here, we demonstrate that the active component of marijuana, http://pubs.acs.org/images/gifchars/Delta.gif9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), competitively inhibits the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) as well as prevents AChE-induced amyloid http://pubs.acs.org/images/gifchars/beta2.gif-peptide (Ahttp://pubs.acs.org/images/gifchars/beta2.gif) aggregation, the key pathological marker of Alzheimer's disease. Computational modeling of the THC-AChE interaction revealed that THC binds in the peripheral anionic site of AChE, the critical region involved in amyloidgenesis. Compared to currently approved drugs prescribed for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, THC is a considerably superior inhibitor of Ahttp://pubs.acs.org/images/gifchars/beta2.gif aggregation,


Copyright © 2006 American Chemical Society

http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/abstract.cgi/mpohbp/2006/3/i06/abs/mp060066m.html



For the entire article and pictures of a normal brain and one affected by Alzheimers please check this link...

http://marijuanaforalzheimers.blogspot.com/2008/10/molecular-link-between-active-component.html

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Can marijuana help treat Alzheimer's disease? General Reference (not clearly pro or con)
The National Institute on Aging stated in its Mar. 2006 booklet Understanding Alzheimer's Disease:
"Alzheimer’s disease is an illness of the brain. It causes large numbers of nerve cells in the brain to die. This affects your ability to remember things and think clearly. Doctors don’t know what causes the disease. They do know that it usually begins after age 60 and nearly half of people age 85 and older may have Alzheimer’s. However, it is not a normal part of aging.[...]
There are medicines that can treat the symptoms of Alzheimer’s. However, there is no cure. Some medicines keep your memory loss and other symptoms from getting worse for a time. These medicines work best if Alzheimer’s disease is found early. Other medicines work to help you sleep better or feel less worried and depressed. These medicines don’t directly treat the disease. They do help you feel more comfortable."


Mar. 2006 - National Institute on Aginghttp://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/images/gstar.gif (http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/viewsource.asp?ID=278)
The Alzheimer's Research Trust stated on their website in a section titled "About Alzheimer's" (accessed 2006):
"The symptoms of Alzheimer's disease are caused by a loss of nerve cells in certain regions of the brain, principally the cerebral cortex, the part that controls our higher mental functions and which makes us unique as humans.
The degeneration of these nerve cells leads to a loss of millions of the connections (synapses) between nerve cells; it is the loss of connections in the part of the brain dealing with memory (medial temporal lobe) that causes the first symptoms. The disease progresses and spreads throughout the cerebral cortex, gradually affecting those parts of the cortex that deal with almost all our other higher cognitive functions and our behaviour."


2006 - Alzheimer's Research Trusthttp://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/images/gstar.gif (http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/viewsource.asp?ID=279)
Can marijuana help treat Alzheimer's disease?

For pro/con arguments see here:
http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/viewanswers.asp?questionID=130

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Marijuana could help aging brains

By Boomer Market Advisor (http://www.boomermarketadvisor.com/r/bmaMag/d/columnist/?auI=521&adcID=0828f5f0980f48e070c95f4e262e30ef) | Published January 1, 2009 From the January 2009 Issue (http://www.boomermarketadvisor.com/r/bmaMag/d/magazine/?mIssue=337&adcID=0828f5f0980f48e070c95f4e262e30ef) of Boomer Market Advisor Magazine
Scientists at Ohio State University say they’re seeing more evidence that smoking dope could be good for the aging brain. Research suggests elements of marijuana reduce inflammation and can stimulate new cells.
While they’re not exactly suggesting daily bong hits, scientists are pushing for the development of a legal, THC-like synthetic drug that could improve memory — good news for the 10 million boomers who are expected to develop Alzheimer’s.

source: http://www.boomermarketadvisor.com/r/bmaMag/d/contentFocus/?adcID=0828f5f0980f48e070c95f4e262e30ef