Cannabis and cannabinoids

The use of cannabis during pregnancy and lactation is widely recognized as a health concern. The placenta is one of the several biological matrices that can be used to detect in utero drug exposure with the distinct advantage of easy and noninvasive collection. We conducted a PubMed search of selected literature published to June 30, 2016 to investigate the pharmacokinetics of cannabinoids, the active constituent of cannabis, in the placenta. The majority of the selected twelve papers was before 1990 and concerned animals at term gestation with great variability of experimental conditions...

BACKGROUND: Cannabis use is common in North America, especially among young people, and is associated with a risk of various acute and chronic adverse health outcomes. Cannabis control regimes are evolving, for example toward a national legalization policy in Canada, with the aim to improve public health, and thus require evidence-based interventions. As cannabis-related health outcomes may be influenced by behaviors that are modifiable by the user, evidence-based Lower-Risk Cannabis Use Guidelines (LRCUG)-akin to similar guidelines in other health fields-offer a valuable, targeted prevention tool to improve public health outcomes...

INTRODUCTION: Cannabis and agonists of the brain cannabinoid receptor (CB1R) produce acute memory impairments in humans. However, the extent to which cannabinoids impair encoding and retrieval in humans has not been established. The objective of this analysis was to determine whether the administration of Δ(9)-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the principal psychoactive constituent of cannabis, impairs encoding and/or retrieval of verbal information. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Healthy subjects were recruited from the community...

Cannabis products have recently regained much attention due to the high pharmacological potential of their cannabinoid content. In this review, the most widely used sample preparation strategies for the extraction of cannabinoids are described for the specific application to either plant materials or biological matrices. Several analytical techniques are described pointing out their respective advantages and drawbacks. In particular, chromatographic methods, such as TLC, GC and HPLC, are discussed and compared in terms of selectivity and sensitivity...

The cannabinoid-1 receptor (CB1R) agonist Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive constituent of cannabis, adversely effects working memory performance in humans. The α2A-adrenoceptor (AR) agonist guanfacine improves working memory performance in humans. The authors aimed to determine the effects of short-term (6 days) treatment with guanfacine on adverse cognitive effects produced by THC. Employing a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover design, the cognitive, subjective, and cardiovascular effects produced by oral THC (20 mg) administration were determined twice in the same cannabis users: once after treatment with placebo and once after treatment with guanfacine (3 mg/day)...

BACKGROUND: Although, especially in the United States, there has been a recent surge of legalized cannabis for either recreational or medicinal purposes, surprisingly little is known about clinical dose-response relationships, pharmaco- and toxicodynamic effects of cannabinoids such as Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Even less is known about other active cannabinoids. METHODS: To address this knowledge gap, an online extraction, high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for simultaneous quantification of 11 cannabinoids and metabolites including THC, 11-hydroxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (11OH-THC), 11-nor-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid (THC-COOH), 11-nor-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid glucuronide (THC-C-gluc), cannabinol (CBN), cannabidiol (CBD), cannabigerol (CBG), cannabidivarin (CBDV), Δ9-tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), and 11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV-COOH) was developed and validated in human urine and plasma...

Despite its controversial nature, the use of medical marijuana and cannabis-derived medicinal products grows more popular with each passing year. As of November 2016, over 40 states have passed legislation regarding the use of either medical marijuana or cannabidiol products. Many providers have started encountering patients experimenting with cannabis products for a wide range of conditions. While the debate continues regarding these agents for both medicinal and recreational use in the general population, special consideration needs to be made for pediatric use...

Anxiety and related disorders are the most common mental conditions affecting the North American population. Despite their established efficacy, first-line antidepressant treatments are associated with significant side effects, leading many afflicted individuals to seek alternative treatments. Cannabis is commonly viewed as a natural alternative for a variety of medical and mental health conditions. Currently, anxiety ranks among the top five medical symptoms for which North Americans report using medical marijuana...

Chronic cannabinoid consumption is an increasingly common behavior among teenagers and has been shown to cause long-lasting neurobehavioral alterations. Besides, it has been demonstrated that cocaine addiction in adulthood is highly correlated with cannabis abuse during adolescence. Cocaine consumption and subsequent abstinence from it can cause psychiatric symptoms, such as psychosis, cognitive impairment, anxiety, and depression. The aim of the present research was to study the consequences of adolescent exposure to cannabis on the psychiatric-like effects promoted by cocaine withdrawal in adult mice...

Prospective epidemiological studies have consistently demonstrated that cannabis use is associated with an increased subsequent risk of both psychotic symptoms and schizophrenia-like psychoses. Early onset of use, daily use of high-potency cannabis, and synthetic cannabinoids carry the greatest risk. The risk-increasing effects are not explained by shared genetic predisposition between schizophrenia and cannabis use. Experimental studies in healthy humans show that cannabis and its active ingredient, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), can produce transient, dose-dependent, psychotic symptoms, as well as an array of psychosis-relevant behavioral, cognitive and psychophysiological effects; the psychotogenic effects can be ameliorated by cannabidiol (CBD)...

BACKGROUND: Cannabis use disorder (CUD) is a prevalent and impairing condition, and established psychosocial treatments convey limited efficacy. In light of recent findings supporting the efficacy of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) for CUD in adolescents, the objective of this trial was to evaluate its efficacy in adults. METHODS: In a 12-week double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial, treatment-seeking adults ages 18-50 with CUD (N=302), enrolled across six National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network-affiliated clinical sites, were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to a 12-week course of NAC 1200mg (n=153) or placebo (n=149) twice daily...

The present work was aimed at the development and validation of a new, efficient and reliable technique for the analysis of the main non-psychoactive cannabinoids in fibre-type Cannabis sativa L. (hemp) inflorescences belonging to different varieties. This study was designed to identify samples with a high content of bioactive compounds, with a view to underscoring the importance of quality control in derived products as well. Different extraction methods, including dynamic maceration (DM), ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) and supercritical-fluid extraction (SFE) were applied and compared in order to obtain a high yield of the target analytes from hemp...

Cannabis (Cannabis spp.) use and cultivation continue to increase in many (European) countries. The illicit indoor cannabis plantations that supply Belgian and European cannabis markets create problems and concerns about health and safety of intervention staff, dismantling companies, the direct environment of cannabis plantations and, eventually, of cannabis users. Main risks may come from pesticide residues on plants, cultivation infrastructure and materials; left-over plant growth-promoting substances; mycotoxins from fungal pathogens on harvested plants; and/or high levels of cannabinoids in cannabis plant parts for consumption...

Recent decades have seen much progress in the identification and characterization of cannabinoid receptors and the elucidation of the mechanisms by which derivatives of the Cannabis sativa plant bind to receptors and produce their physiological and psychological effects. The information generated in this process has enabled better understanding of the fundamental physiological and psychological processes controlled by the central and peripheral nervous systems and has fostered the development of natural and synthetic cannabinoids as therapeutic agents...

OBJECTIVES: Cannabis smokers often report that they use the drug to relax or to relieve emotional stress. However, few clinical studies have shown evidence of the stress-relieving effects of cannabis or cannabinoid agonists. In this study, we sought to assess the influence of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a main active ingredient of cannabis, upon emotional responses to an acute psychosocial stressor among healthy young adults. METHODS: Healthy volunteers (N=42) participated in two experimental sessions, one with psychosocial stress (Trier Social Stress Test, TSST) and another with a non-stressful task, after receiving 0 (N=13), 7...

INTRODUCTION: 5F-ADBINACA, AB-FUBINACA, and STS-135 are 3 novel third-generation fluorinate synthetic cannabinoids that are illegally marketed as incense, herbal preparations, or research chemicals for their psychoactive cannabis-like effects. METHODS: The present study aims at investigating the in vitro and in vivo pharmacological activity of 5F-ADBINACA, AB-FUBINACA, and STS-135 in male CD-1 mice, comparing their in vivo effects with those caused by the administration of Δ(9) -THC and JWH-018...

OBJECTIVE: This article reviews the literature on the use of marijuana in the elderly. Pharmacists play an important role in the management of medications including drug use of potentially illegal drugs, including marijuana. The use of both recreational and medical marijuana has grown exponentially in the general population, including in older adults. As of 2017, marijuana for medical use is legal in 26 states and the District of Columbia. DATA SOURCES: PubMed and Internet search using the following terms: marijuana, cannabis, delta-9-tetrhydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol, cannabinoid, elderly, geriatric, and pharmacology...

During the last decade the use of medical Cannabis has expanded globally and legislation is getting more liberal in many countries, facilitating the research on cannabinoids. The unique interaction of cannabinoids with the human endocannabinoid system make these compounds an interesting target to be studied as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of several medical conditions. However, currently there are important limitations in the study, production and use of cannabinoids as pharmaceutical drugs. Besides the main constituent tetrahydrocannabinolic acid, the structurally related compound cannabidiol is of high interest as drug candidate...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The lack of clarity about the effect of cannabis use on cognition may be attributable to the considerable heterogeneity among studies in terms of cannabis composition. This article selectively reviews studies examining the distinctive effects of cannabinoids on human cognition, particularly those of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). RECENT FINDINGS: Research indicates that ∆9-THC administration acutely impairs cognition, particularly memory and emotional processing...

BACKGROUND: Despite growing interest in the therapeutic use of cannabis to manage chronic pain, only limited data that address these issues are available. In recent years, a number of nations have introduced specific laws to allow patients to use cannabis preparations to treat a variety of medical conditions. In 2015, the Italian government authorized the use of cannabis to treat several diseases, including chronic pain generally, spasticity in multiple sclerosis, cachexia and anorexia among AIDS and cancer patients, glaucoma, Tourette syndrome, and certain types of epilepsy...