Marijuana Compound Found Superior To Drugs For Alzheimer’s AMAZING RESULTS

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/marijuana-compound-found-superior-drugs-alzheimers



Could the active ingredient in marijuana, responsible for its
characteristic “high,” help turn the tide against the accelerating
Alzheimer’s epidemic? A remarkable study published in the journal
Molecular Pharmacology in 2006, found that this long vilified plant
contains a compound with not one, but two therapeutic properties ideal
for addressing both the surface symptom (memory problems) and root cause
(brain plaque) of Alzheimer’s disease.[i] This is an ironic finding,
considering that the prevailing stereotype is that using marijuana
“fries” the brain, leading to debilitating memory issues. Researchers
discovered that the psychoactive component of marijuana,
?9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), both “competitively inhibits the enzyme
acetylcholinesterase (AChE) as well as prevents AChE-induced amyloid
?-peptide (A?) aggregation.”

On the first account, THC’s ability
to inhibit the AChE enzyme, is not unlike the mechanism of action behind
most Alzheimer’s drugs on the market today. Drugs like donepezil (trade
name Aricept), for instance, by targeting and inhibiting the brain
enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE), result in an increase in brain
levels of this neurotransmitter, which in turn, results in symptom
reduction, i.e. improved memory. Donepezil, however, is riddled with
controversy due its well-known association with seizures, which likely
reflects its intrinsic neurotoxicity. It is, in fact, a chemical in the
same general chemical class as venom, insecticides and chemical war
agents, such as nerve gas.