Two scientific papers published this month have been added to the growing body of evidence that cannabinoids may have significant antiviral potency and could be used to create a prophylactic treatment for Covid-19.
The Claim
The latest research on the impact of cannabinoid compounds on SARS-CoV-2 replication has generated a tanned in the main stream i social media, leading some users to say that marijuana use can help prevent or fight COVID infection.
“All this time we’ve been listening to the CDC, we should have been eating CBD,” Jimmy Kimmel of ABC said on his show last week.
“Now, if you’re skeptical about science here, let me remind you that this study has been reviewed by THC, the CDC’s nephew,” joked Stephen Colbert, presenter of The Late Show.
If all this “smoking weed helps prevent COVID” brother, science is true, I’m basically a super human.
– Anthony (@BigJigglyPanda) January 14, 2022
They say two things about cannabis destroyed coronavirus cells. (In the first studies). Could you imagine if all we had to do for Covid was lift up the whole damn world?
– Hurry up all????️⚧️????️???????????? (@catfishyak) January 18, 2022
Aside from Stoner’s humor, the news also fueled misinformation and misinformation. Some accounts were dumped in reports to promote products containing CBD, the non-psychoactive cannabis compound that appears in the investigation.
“We are celebrating that CBD is officially scientifically tested to prevent Covid and that the vaccine is not,” a tweet marketing CBD oil falsely stated.
The facts
Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, there have been a number of scientific studies exploring possible links between cannabis and COVID-19, including one from January 2021. to study evaluating the antiviral potency of cannabinoids against SARS-CoV-2 and an Israeli project to develop CBD-based treatments for coronavirus by 2020.
More recently, a study, conducted in conjunction with Oregon State University and published in the Journal of Natural Products on Jan. 10, indicated that cannabis compounds could be used as a “therapeutic agent” to block virus entry. COVID-19 in the body.
This week, a team of researchers at the University of Chicago said they had found evidence that cannabidiol (CBD) from a cannabis plant could inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection in human cells and mice.
But while these and other studies on possible preventive or therapeutic treatments for the virus are encouraging, the aspects of the research that capture the titles tend to obscure critical information and nuance the findings, often leading to the proliferation of misinterpretations or misinterpretations. deceptive.
As previously reported by Newsweek, the peer-reviewed Journal of Natural Products found that “cannabigerolic acid (CBGA) and cannabidiol acid (CBDA) prevented human epithelial cell infection … and prevented SARS-CoV-2 entry lives in cells “.
But that conclusion was accompanied by some important warnings, which poured cold water into claims that recreational marijuana use is now “scientifically proven” to be effective in preventing COVID infection.
On the one hand, the study involved testing with two early variants of COVID, Alpha and Beta, but did not provide data on the effects on the now dominant Omicron variant. It was also performed in vitro, meaning that it evaluated the impact of hemp cannabinoid acids on human cells in a clinical setting, which may not necessarily be replicated in human trials.
The fact that the acid had to be extracted from the hemp leaves, as well as the high purity and quantity necessary for the effect to be tangible, ruled out the more widespread “delivery methods”, such as smoking or consuming food with marijuana.
“The results of our infection inhibition trials clearly indicate that CBDA and CBGA are able to block the cellular entry of SARS-CoV-2. The concentrations required to block infection in 50% of viruses are high. “But they could be clinically achievable,” said the authors of the research. , reiterating that any potential treatment should be combined with appropriate doses of the VOCID vaccine.
Meanwhile, the University of Chicago study, published Jan. 20 in Science Advances, states in summary that “cannabidiol (CBD) inhibits SARS-CoV-2 infection in cells and mice,” offering another reason for cautious optimism. But it also fails to justify claims that marijuana products can prevent COVID infection, nor that they are “more effective than vaccines.”
This research, which included cell-based findings, preclinical studies, and analysis of patient data showing the relationship between CBD use and the rate of SARS-CoV-2 infection, concluded that “CBD and its metabolite 7-OH-CBD can block SARS – CoV-2 infection in the early and even later stages of the infection “.
He also backed up previous findings that the substance “suppresses cytokine activation in response to viral infection, reducing the likelihood of immune cell recruitment and subsequent cytokine storms to the lungs and other affected tissues.”
But the authors also highlighted a number of issues, both in terms of the use of existing commercial products for the prevention and treatment of VOCID, and the development of new ones.
Although CBD-containing products are available on the market, they note that these products vary greatly in quality, CBD content and their pharmacokinetic properties after oral administration, which is largely unknown. In addition, it was considered that the amount and CBD purity of existing products was insufficient, while additional compounds found in cannabis such as THC could be detrimental to antiviral effects.
“This essentially eliminates the feasibility of marijuana serving as an effective source of antiviral CBD, as well as issues related to its legal status,” the study concludes, noting that “other means of administering CBD, such as vaping and smoking, raise additional concerns about the potential for “lung damage.”
While warning against the use of CBD in “currently available formulations, including edibles, inhalants, or topicals as preventive or treatment therapy,” researchers are calling for more studies and clinical trials to establish the optimal means. delivery of the compound to patients.
The Judgment
Mostly fake.
Various scientific studies on the effects of CBD or cannabis-derived compounds on the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 virus have shown promising results. These studies, however, did not comprehensively evaluate the possible medicinal qualities or antiviral properties of the marijuana plant, which contains many other compounds in addition to CBD, and its recreational use. The researchers also explicitly warned of the use of existing means of CBD delivery, such as food or inhalation, for treatment or prevention, and stressed the importance of vaccinations against VOCID.
VERIFICATION OF FACTS BY NEWSWEEK
Some social media users are using recent studies to misleadingly claim that smoking or consuming marijuana products can help combat COVID. Above, protesters march in New York’s annual cannabis parade and rally in support of legalizing marijuana for recreational and medical use.
ANGELA WEISS / AFP via Getty Images
