Weathering the Cytokine Storm
In mice, THC halts the immune cascade that causes acute respiratory distress syndrome
A preclinical study showed that administration of THC was highly effective in preventing chemically induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in a mouse model (1).
The researchers exposed mice to enterotoxin B, which usually leads to a cytokine storm that causes the immune system to attack lung tissues. The result? Rapid onset of ARDS and death within a few days. In fact, all of the mice in the untreated control group grew so sick they had to be euthanized.
However, when the researchers gave THC immediately after exposure to the toxin none of the mice developed symptoms of ARDS and 100 percent survived.
These dramatic results have raised speculation that THC might help patients who develop ARDS as a result of COVID-19; however, the research is preliminary at this stage, with no guarantee it will translate from mice to humans.
- A Mohammed et al., Front Pharmacol, 11, 893 (2020). DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2020.00893
After studying biology at Imperial College London, I got my start in biomedical publishing as a commissioning editor for healthcare journals, and I’ve spent my career covering everything from early-stage research to clinical medicine. Attracted by the creativity, talent and passion of the team, I joined Texere Publishing in 2014, where I’m now Associate Content Director and Editor of The Cannabis Scientist.
