Pothead420
04-29-2008, 09:33 AM
STUDY FINDS MEDICAL BENEFITS IN MARIJUANA
SAN FRANCISCO ( AP ) -- A new study showing how the active ingredient in marijuana works on the brain apparently backs claims that smoking pot relieves pain.
Like morphine, the substance known as THC affects an area at the base of the skull that blocks pain impulses, the University of California at San Francisco study said.
The findings are in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.
They appear to give credence to the claim that marijuana has medical benefits at a time when communities are considering whether to legalize pot use for illnesses.
In laboratory experiments, researchers gave rats tiny doses of a synthetic form of tetrahydrocannabinol, a cannabinoid, and then measured how long it took the rats to move their tails from a heat source. Cannabinoids are the major active ingredient in marijuana.
Researchers focused on a region deep in the brain called rostral ventromedial medulla, or RVM, which researcher Ian Meng described as a relay station for pain signals similar to the volume knob on a stereo.
THC, like morphine, turns down the volume -- minimizing the intensity of pain sensations reaching other parts of the brain -- by switching off certain cells.
That suggests that marijuana-like drugs might be developed as effective painkillers without the unwanted side effects of opiates like morphine, which is highly addictive and can cause nausea. Marijuana-like drugs, in contrast, are less addictive, tend to counteract nausea and stimulate appetite.
"I think in the future you'll see different kinds of drug combination therapies, where you can use cannabis-like drugs with a lower dose of a morphine compound and possibly reduce side effects," Meng said.
The findings were cheered by marijuana users who say the drug helps them cope with diseases such as AIDS and cancer.
"These patients ... should not be going to jail," said Chuck Thomas of the Marijuana Policy Project.
Five states and the District of Columbia have initiatives similar to Proposition 215, the 1996 ballot measure that lets Californians with doctors' notes grow and use marijuana for pain relief.
SAN FRANCISCO ( AP ) -- A new study showing how the active ingredient in marijuana works on the brain apparently backs claims that smoking pot relieves pain.
Like morphine, the substance known as THC affects an area at the base of the skull that blocks pain impulses, the University of California at San Francisco study said.
The findings are in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.
They appear to give credence to the claim that marijuana has medical benefits at a time when communities are considering whether to legalize pot use for illnesses.
In laboratory experiments, researchers gave rats tiny doses of a synthetic form of tetrahydrocannabinol, a cannabinoid, and then measured how long it took the rats to move their tails from a heat source. Cannabinoids are the major active ingredient in marijuana.
Researchers focused on a region deep in the brain called rostral ventromedial medulla, or RVM, which researcher Ian Meng described as a relay station for pain signals similar to the volume knob on a stereo.
THC, like morphine, turns down the volume -- minimizing the intensity of pain sensations reaching other parts of the brain -- by switching off certain cells.
That suggests that marijuana-like drugs might be developed as effective painkillers without the unwanted side effects of opiates like morphine, which is highly addictive and can cause nausea. Marijuana-like drugs, in contrast, are less addictive, tend to counteract nausea and stimulate appetite.
"I think in the future you'll see different kinds of drug combination therapies, where you can use cannabis-like drugs with a lower dose of a morphine compound and possibly reduce side effects," Meng said.
The findings were cheered by marijuana users who say the drug helps them cope with diseases such as AIDS and cancer.
"These patients ... should not be going to jail," said Chuck Thomas of the Marijuana Policy Project.
Five states and the District of Columbia have initiatives similar to Proposition 215, the 1996 ballot measure that lets Californians with doctors' notes grow and use marijuana for pain relief.