Division in the UK Cannabis Movement - Treating Yourself

THE SCIENCE OF CANNABIS LEADS IN MANY DIRECTIONSEven the U.S. government, however, has studies that point to incrediblebenefit. Thanks to work by renowned researchers, its patent #6,630,507 B1entitled Cannabinoids as Antioxdants and Neuroprotectants, owned by theUnited States of America as represented by the Department of Health andHuman Services, has been a boon to cannabinoid research, raising awarenessinto the usefulness of cannabinoids in treating myriad oxidation-associateddiseases, including inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, and asneuroprotectants.In 1995, Professor Vincenzo Di Marzo,PhD, research director at the Institute ofBiomolecular Chemistry of theNational Research Council, in Naples,Italy, another of the world’s leadingcannabinoid scientists, coined the termendocannabinoid (eCB) for these compounds that interactwith cannabinoid receptors. From this came the endocannabinoidsystem as the identity of the whole shebang,including the receptors, their ligands, and regulation ofrelated enzymes and proteins. The new study of thebody’s eCB system has contributed to fresh insight intobrain and body functions. Speaking at Patients Out ofTime’s conference, Di Marzo reviewed the complexity ofthe system, along with recent scientific developments, andnoted that its activation might have positive implicationsfor stress, recovery and adaptation.Following the isolation of anadamide and the eCB systemin the 1990s, scientists worldwide set out to identify andunderstand why receptors allow the active components incannabis to bind to the nervous system, setting off reactionsthat reduce pain and anxiety and produce feelingsof well-being, ranging from calm to euphoria. Whilesome studies show that by interacting with overlychargedareas of the brain, components in cannabis canhelp those who suffer from anxiety disorders such aspost-traumatic stress and even stuttering, others revealthat too much cannabis, or a THC-rich strain, can resultin anxiety.Because of the Controlled Substances Act’s Schedule I statusof cannabis as a substance with no medical benefit,the majority of the research funded by the United Stateshas been motivated by questions of how and why marijuanaposes risk to human health in areas primarily ofmental health and addiction. Even the U.S. government,however, has studies that point to incredible benefit.Thanks to work by renowned researchers, its patent#6,630,507 B1 entitled Cannabinoids as Antioxdantsand Neuroprotectants, owned by the United States ofAmerica as represented by the Department of Health andHuman Services, has been a boon to cannabinoidresearch, raising awareness into the usefulness ofcannabinoids in treating myriad oxidation-associated diseases,including inflammatory and autoimmune diseases,and as neuroprotectants.Following revelations by Mechoulam and his colleagues,many studies focused on anandamide. While 1980sresearch revealed that endorphins, the body’s morphine,were elevated in blood samples following heavy exercise,subsequent studies downplayed the role of the endorphinsin producing the “runner’s high,” suggesting thatendorphins in the blood stream after exercise might notbe the reason for the mental “high.” Instead, a growingbody of research suggests that the eCB system is the gatekeeperfor our natural sense of well-being followingheavy exercise. ECBs, the body’s own cannabinoids, aremade of lipids, molecules that pass through the body’sblood / brain barrier with ease.One scientist, Greg Gerdeman, PhD,turns to evolution for a better understandingof what might be producingfeelings of well-being following exercise.He is not alone in this endeavor, asa long line of scientists have studied therole that evolution might have played in shaping our abilityto produce substances that might help in warding offor ignore pain to prevent starvation during the difficult,exhausting work of hunting for and gathering food10,000 years ago.His work has centered on how the cannabinoid receptorsin the eCB neurotransmitter system — the same systemthat cannabis interacts with — influence learning, behaviorand even drug taking.To examine whether there are differences in exerciseinducedeCBs, and whether these levels differ acrossspecies, he and other scientists designed an enduranceexercise study. Recently published in The Journal ofExperimental Biology, a leading journal in comparativeanimal physiology, the study was made possible by aNational Science Foundation grant written by Gerdeman,David Raichien, a biological anthropologist at theUniversity of Arizona, and Andrea Giuffrida, a pharmacologistwith expertise in the biochemical detection ofeCBs in biological samples.Issue 37, 2012 • TreatingYourself • 49