Pubdate: Thu, 07 Apr 2005
Source: Times, The (UK)
Copyright: 2005 Times Newspapers Ltd
Contact:  http://www.the-times.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/454
Author: Nigel Hawkes
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)

CANNABIS CAN SLOW NARROWING OF ARTERIES

The Active Ingredient in Cannabis Protects Arteries Against Harmful
Changes That Lead to Strokes and Heart Attacks, New Research Suggests

THE active ingredient in cannabis protects arteries against harmful
changes that lead to strokes and heart attacks, new research suggests.

THC, or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, is known to affect the brain and
make cannabis-users "high". The new research shows that it also has an
influence on blood vessels.

A study of mice revealed that the compound blocks the process of
inflammation, which is largely responsible for the narrowing of arteries.

Inflammation combines with fatty deposits to produce obstructive
"plaques", a condition known as atherosclerosis. These can block
arteries to the heart, causing angina and heart attacks, or to the
brain, leading to strokes. Atherosclerosis is the primary cause of
heart disease and stroke in the Western world, accounting for up to
half the deaths from both conditions.

The scientists, led by Francois Mach, from Geneva University Hospital
in Switzerland, studied a strain of specially bred mice that are
susceptible to narrowing of the arteries. They were fed a
high-cholesterol diet to make them develop atherosclerotic plaques.
Adding THC to their diet caused the growth of the obstructions in
their arteries to slow markedly after 11 months. When the mice were
given a chemical that blocked the action of THC, their arteries
continued to narrow at a fast rate.

Writing in Nature, the scientists point out that the THC doses used
were low -- too low to cause the mice to get "high". They wrote: "Our
results suggest that cannabinoid derivatives with activity at the CB2
receptor may be valuable clinical targets for treating
atherosclerosis."

Michael Roth, an American critical-care expert from the University of
California at Los Angeles, urged caution when considering cannabis as
a heart disease therapy.

"The findings. . . are striking, but they should not be taken to mean
that smoking marijuana is beneficial to the heart," Professor Roth
wrote in an accompanying article. "The dose response curve to THC in
this study was very narrow and U-shaped, with higher and lower
concentrations failing to produce protective effects.

"It would be difficult to achieve such specific concentrations in the
blood by smoking marijuana. Also, no studies have been performed in
humans to evaluate the effects of THC on atherosclerosis."

He added that the effects of THC on the brain, where it binds to a
different receptor protein, could counteract its benefit to the heart.

[sidebar]

THE DOPE ON MARIJUANA

. The cannabis plant grows wild in many parts of the world.
Cultivation dates back thousands of years

. Cannabis-based drugs are being developed to treat the symptoms of
multiple sclerosis and to serve as painkillers for a variety of
conditions, including cancer

. The decision by the Home Office to categorise cannabis as a soft
drug is being reconsidered after long-term studies suggested that it
increases the risk of schizophrenia

. Present-day cannabis, the result of selective breeding, is reckoned
to be more potent than that smoked by the flower-power generation
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