Could a Marijuana-like Drug Help Alzheimer's Symptoms?

A legal medical formula with marijuana components may actually help Alzheimer's patients retain or enhance their memory. It is still true that excessive use of marijuana can cause short-term memory loss and have other side effects. However, based on the latest study, scientists have found that some aspects of marijuana in limited doses may actually help retain memory in Alzheimer's patients.

A study was recently released by Ohio State University scientist regarding their research on rats injected with a marijuana-like drug, known as WIN-55212-2. The researchers’  found certain chemical components of marijuana cut down on the inflammation of the brain, which is thought to possibly be a leading factor in the cause of Alzheimer's. They also found that the marijuana component stimulated the production of new brain cells and resulted in enhanced memory. Based on the research, the development of a legal drug containing certain properties similar to those in marijuana might help prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimers disease.

During the study, scientist induced swelling or inflammation of rat’s brains which didn’t already have inflammation and then injected the same rats with WIN-55212-2, over a three week period. The drug reduced the advancement of the inflammation fighting cells. The older rats that already had symptoms of inflammation were only given a dose of the WIN-55212-2 and then placed in a swimming tank. The scientist observed the rats and found that those who were given the WIN injection found hidden resting places much quicker than those who didn’t receive the injection. When the scientist later dissected the brains of the rats they found that the inflammation had been reduced and new brain cells had began to grow.

Yannick Marchalant, study coauthor and research assistant professor of psychology at Ohio State University and his colleagues, stated that smoking pot or taking WIN after the memory loss process has started isn’t going to help. Marchalant said “patients who have been diagnosed have already lost neurons'' and “it’s too late” for them to benefit from the proposed drug option. He explained that a preventive strategy would need to have been started much earlier.

According to the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse heavy marijuana usage can damage short-term memory and speed up the aging process of the neurons in the part of the brain that is responsible for memory. Scientist researching the potentially new drug known as WIN-55212-2 used low doses to avoid causing psychoactive effects while saving memory. "The dosage of WIN would be like giving one puff a day and not a whole joint,'' according to Marchalant.

Some may think that smoking a puff of a joint each day will ward off the side effects of Alzheimer's, but this is not the case. The key difference is marijuana doesn’t have WIN's ability to also block the brain receptor that appears to cause inflammation, according to Marchalant. A medically prescribed drug would be an exact dose, which would avoid too much marijuana exposure that may overstimulate the cannabis receptors and reduce memory, rather than enhance memory.

While WIN hasn’t yet been tested on humans, because of its tendency to induce psychoactive effects, the latest research on rats shows the potential for humans to benefit from the drug component, and we may see research testing on humans soon.