Javier Ruiz Fernandez leads the team of researchers from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid managed to stop sclerosis in mice through the molecule WIN55,512-2.
Many patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS) have chosen to consume Cannabis sativa to stop the ongoing muscle contraction, spasms, severe pain and difficulty sleeping.
The reason: the drugs traditionally used to treat these symptoms as a result of the destruction of the myelin sheath, are not effective in some people.
The biological basis for this positive effect of cannabis was discovered by the Cannabinoid Research Group, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, led by Javier Fernández Ruiz.
The team studied the interaction of some compounds produced by the plant, called cannabinoids, with proteins located in the membrane of cells of neural tissue called cannabinoid receptor type 1 or CB1.
Both types of receptors are part of a cellular communication system particularly active in the brain, called the endocannabinoid system.
Fruit of the study of cannabinoids as potential therapy for multiple sclerosis British pharmaceutical company GW Pharmaceuticals has developed a useful drug to reduce symptoms such as spasticity and pain called Sativex ®, which has already been approved for use in several countries like Spain.
However, cannabinoids may also be effective in slowing the progression of this disease and that is currently under investigation.
"Cleaning" of cells
With the idea of slowing the progression of the disease, Fernandez has spent years investigating the potential therapeutic and neuroprotective cannabinoids to treat the symptoms and slow the development of MS.
In a study published recently in the journal Neuropharmacology, research group focused on the study of the positive effects of a synthetic molecule called WIN55,512-2 (WIN)-which mimics the action of cannabis on cannabinoid receptors in a model-multiple sclerosis in mice.
The study results showed that the WIN act through various fronts. On the one hand, we observed that increased expression of genes responsible for "cleaning" the glutamate, the excess damages neurons. Furthermore, WIN decreased the expression of genes associated with an inflammatory response harmful to the environment neuronal cells, as seen in marrow of mice treated with said drug.
All these reactions as a result gave a combined reduction in disease progression in mice treated with WIN compared to mice treated with an innocuous substance or placebo.
And thanks to the use of molecules that block CB1 or CB2 selectively, the authors found that these effects of WIN at an early stage of the disease were actually interacting with the CB1 receptor.
Sources: Emol.c om and Delicious Seeds
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