Scientists have discovered a surprising new use for cannabis behindI find it its main non-psychoactive component, ssynthetic cannabidiol – better known as downtown – can kill the bacteria responsible for gonorrhea, meningitis and legionnaires’ disease.
The research, which was a collaboration between IMB’s Center for Superbug Solutions and Botanix Pharmaceuticals Limited, could lead to the first new class of antibiotics for resistant bacteria in 60 years.
Dr Mark Blaskovich, Director of the Institute of Molecular Biosciences, said the CBD could invade and kill a wide range of bacteria including Neisseria gonorrhoeae, what causes gonorrhea.
Blaskovich said: “This is the first time that downtown has been shown to kill some types of gram-negative bacteria. These bacteria have an extra outer membrane, an extra line of defense it makes it harder for antibiotics to penetrate. ‘
The news can be especially great for people in Australia, where gonorrhea is the second most common sexually transmitted infection.
According to IMB, it has become so common that there are none longer a reliable antibiotic to treat it, as the bacteria are especially good at developing resistance.
The research – what was recently published in the journal Communications Biology – also suggested that cannabidiol is effective in killing amazing MRSA found in golden staph bacteria and can be used to treat it stomach ulcers and wounds to the diabetes.
10 days ago“Cannabidiol has a low tendency to cause resistance in bacteria, even if we accelerate the potential development by increasing the concentrations of the antibiotics during ‘treatment’,” Blaskovich added.
“We think cannabidiol kills bacteria by bursting their outer cell membranes, but we do not yet know exactly how it does that and need further investigation.”
Vince Ippolito, president and CEO of Botanix, said the research saidshown big potential for the development of effective treatments for approach the growing global threat of antibiotic resistance.
Ippolito said: ‘Congratulations to Dr Blaskovich and his team for producing this important investigation – the published data determine the potential of synthetic cannabinoids as antimicrobials. “
Further trials of CBD formulations are now underway, with Blaskovich telling it Courier Mail: “We think we can design another version of the CBD that may have a systemic activity.
“We want something that does not break down in the body as quickly as the CBD. There is definitely the potential for the CBD to be a prototypical representative of a new class of antibiotics.”