Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:29:5
David Goodhue - AHN Reporter
British Columbia, Canada (AHN) - Canadian researchers are placing doubt on marijuana's ability to slow or reverse the effects of Alzheimer's disease on the brain.
The researchers, from the University of British Columbia and the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, said in a statement that they were testing previous studies showing that a synthetic compound found in marijuana reduced the toxicity of plaques and encouraged the growth of new neurons.
The rats used in those studies carried the amyloid protein, the toxin that forms plaque in people suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
But for their study, the Canadian researchers used mice carrying human genetic mutations that cause the disease, which they said in their statement is widely considered to be a more accurate model for Alzheimer's in people.
After testing the mice, the scientists said that they not only didn't observe any benefits, they also saw some detrimental effects of treating the disease with the compound.
The study is publisher in the current issue of the journal Current Alzheimer's Research.
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