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A new study suggests there may be some special health benefits hidden in cannabis plants that could help to block COVID-19 from entering the body.
Scientists from Oregon State University and Oregon Health & Sciences University published a new peer-review study that examined three cannabis compounds that are found in THC and CBD: cannabigerolic acid, which scientists dubbed CBG-A; tetrahydrocannabinolic acid, known as THC-A; and cannabidiolic acid, or CBD-A.
After extracting them from the plant, the biological compounds were then incubated with the spike protein from COVID-19 (SARS-COV-2 virus) and were injected into human epithelial cells after 24 hours. Scientists discovered that the virus’s cells had been miraculously treated by the CBDA and CBGA compounds. The cells had no trace of the COVID-19 RNA, essentially blocking high concentrations of the virus from entering.
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A technique called “affinity-selection mass spectrometry” was used to assess how the compounds interacted with the spike protein of COVID-19. The same effect occurred when scientists conducted the experiment on alpha and beta strains of the variants found in the U.K. and South Africa.
Researchers said that the evidence could provide a strong case for the compounds to be used to create another preventive measure for protecting against stronger variants of the virus in the future.
“With widespread use of cannabinoids, resistant variants could still arise, but the combination of vaccination and CBDA/CBGA treatment should create a more challenging environment with which SARS-CoV-2 must contend, reducing the likelihood of escape,” officials behind the study explained, according to the Journal of Natural Products.
CBDA and CBGA’s “virus-neutralizing” capabilities are definitely promising, but researchers said the compounds would most likely have to be consumed in the form of a pill or liquid in order for people to truly experience their benefits, and that’s only if the Biden Administration authorizes the use of cannabis for researchers to begin experimenting with other ways of fighting off the disease.
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