<b><i>Cannabis sativa</i></b> and Cannabidiol: A Therapeutic Strategy for the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases?

Abstract

This work is a literature review, presenting the current state of the use of cannabinoids on neurodegenerative diseases. The emphasis is on Parkinson’s (PD) and Alzheimer’s (AD) diseases, the two most prevalent neurological diseases. The review goes from &lt;i&gt;Cannabis sativa&lt;/i&gt; and its hundreds of bioactive compounds to Δ&lt;sup&gt;9&lt;/sup&gt;-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and mainly cannabidiol (CBD) and their interactions with the endocannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2). CBD molecular targets were also focused on to explain its neuroprotective action mechanism on neurodegenerative diseases. Although THC is the main psychoactive component of &lt;i&gt;C. sativa,&lt;/i&gt; and it may induce transient psychosis-like symptoms, growing evidence suggests that CBD may have protective effects against the psychotomimetic effects of THC and therapeutic properties. Furthermore, a great number of recent works on the neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory CBD effects and its molecular targets are also reviewed. We analyzed CBD actions in preclinical and in clinical trials, conducted with PD and AD patients. Although the data on preclinical assays are more convincing, the same is not true with the clinical data. Despite the consensus among researchers on the potential of CBD as a neuroprotective agent, larger and well-designed randomized clinical trials will be necessary to gather conclusive results concerning the use of CBD as a therapeutic strategy for the treatment of diseases such as PD and AD.

The Cannabinoids, CBDA and THCA, Rescue Memory Deficits and Reduce Amyloid-Beta and Tau Pathology in an Alzheimer’s Disease-like Mouse Model

“…Therefore, various studies have been conducted on the function of cannabinoid receptors in the central nervous system. In particular, many studies have been conducted on neurodegenerative diseases using CBD and THC, representative agonists of cannabinoid receptors [ 64 , 65 ]. In addition, CBD and THC have potential therapeutic efficacy in clinical trials for Parkinson’s disease [ 66 , 67 ].…”

Cannabidiol Protects Dopaminergic-like Neurons against Paraquat- and Maneb-Induced Cell Death through Safeguarding DJ-1CYS106 and Caspase 3 Independently of Cannabinoid Receptors: Relevance in Parkinson’s Disease

“…Although the use of CBD for therapeutic purposes is still novel ( e.g. , refs − ), these results overall support the potential therapeutic utility of CBD in PD.…”

An Overview of Cannabidiol as a Multifunctional Drug: Pharmacokinetics and Cellular Effects

“…CBD attenuates IRAK-1 degradation and reverses IκB degradation, resulting in a decrease in NF-κB p65 nuclear translocation. CBD impacts the interplay between transcription factors, such as nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and NF-κB, enhancing the expression of Nrf2 activators and promoting its transcriptional activity [ 5 ], lastly, inhibiting the NF-κB pathway.…”

“…In recent decades, there has been a renewed interest in the therapeutic potential of cannabis, including its individual compounds. The primary psychoactive compound found in Cannabis is Δ 9-tetrahydrocannabidiol (Δ9-THC) [ 2 , 5 ], while Cannabidiol (CBD) is the main non-psychoactive component. CBD is a small lipophilic molecule that was initially discovered in 1940 as a derivative of the cannabidiolic acid (2-[(1R,6R)-3-methyl-6-prop-1-en-2-ylcyclohex-2-en-1-yl]-5-pentylbenzene-1,3-diol).…”