WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Researchers from the University Hospital Bonn, the University of Bonn and a team from Hebrew University discovered that cannabis might reverse aging and enhance mental capacity.
Although the study was conducted on mice, the scientists believe that similar results could potentially be achieved in humans.
The study focused on the endocannabinoid system or ECS, which regulates and controls many of the body's critical functions, as well as the cannabinoid receptor type-1, a major component of ECS. Both of this is linked with cognitive decline that comes with aging.
During the study, a group of male mice, aged 4 months and 18 months, were assigned either a low dose of tetrahydrocannabinol or THC, the primary psychoactive part of cannabis, or a placebo for a period of 28 days.
The researchers observed various factors, including brain function, the amount of synaptic signaling between specific proteins, and the mice's overall metabolic state. They also monitored their weight, activity levels, and food intake, and the biochemistry of their brains, blood plasma, and the fat in their tissues.
The study analyzed the impact of THC on Mechanistic Target of Rapamycin or mTOR, which is the central hub for cell growth and metabolism, as well as metabolome, a complex reaction network that summarizes all metabolic properties of a cell or tissue.
The findings, published in the journal ACS Pharmacology & Translation Science, revealed that mice, which received THC, experienced an increased activity in mTOR accompanied with a greater level of synaptic proteins.
Additionally, the researchers noted that the treatment enhanced the mice's overall metabolic states and lowered levels of mTOR in their fat tissue. Also, the treatment reduced the levels of amino acids and carbohydrate metabolites in blood plasma.
'We concluded that long-term THC treatment initially has a cognition-enhancing effect by increasing energy and synaptic protein production in the brain, followed by an anti-aging effect by decreasing mTOR activity and metabolic processes in the periphery,' said Dr Andras Bilkei-Gorzo from the Institute of Molecular Psychiatry at the UKB and a researcher at the University of Bonn.
'Our study suggests that a dual effect on mTOR activity and the metabolome could be the basis for an effective anti-aging and cognition-enhancing drug.'
Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2024 AFX News
