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Painkillers Prevent Marijuana-Induced Memory Problems?
– Reported, November 25 2013
(Ivanhoe Newswire) Marijuana, people use it recreationally and medically to treat a variety of conditions, from chronic pain to epilepsy. However, a new study has revealed the molecular pathways responsible for marijuana-induced learning and memory problems, and preventing these side effects could be as easy as taking an over-the-counter painkiller.
“Our studies have solved the longtime mystery of how marijuana causes neuronal and memory impairments,” senior study author Chu Chen of Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, was quoted as saying. “The results suggest that the use of medical marijuana could be broadened if patients concurrently take a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug such as ibuprofen.”
In the new study, Chen and his colleagues discovered that treatment with the active ingredient in marijuana, Δ 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC), caused an increase in levels of an enzyme called cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in the mouse hippocampus. Drugs, or generic techniques, that reduced COX-2 levels in mice prevented memory problems and neuronal abnormalities.
For more information, contact: Mary Beth O’Leary, [email protected].
SOURCE: Cell, November 2013
