According to a new study, the administration of THC can help to boost traumatic brain injury (TBI) recovery.
As reported by Cannabis Health, the study, published in Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research this past August, suggests that THC can help those suffering with TBI towards recovery of their memory and locomotor function.
For the study, the research team, based at the University of South Florida, treated mice with THC and measured differences in their working memory and locomotor function at baseline and then days three, seven and fourteen.
According to the researchers, the mice displayed “marked improvement” which indicates that the phytocannabinoid could potentially reverse the deficit in memory loss following brain injury.
The authors believe that this effect is linked to particular proteins in the brain, those being: G-CSF, BDNF and GDNF.
The proteins named have previously exhibited that they mediate self-repair of the brain following a controlled cortical impact (CCI), which is a model scientists use to induce a reproducible injury.
Another finding from the study, was that mice treated with THC experienced an up-regulation of 2-AG, an endocannabinoid that plays a vital role in the endocannabinoid system and keeps the body in homeostasis. It activates the CB-1 receptors which are in especially high concentration in parts of the brain.
The researchers say that after an injury, the encannabinoid system appears to be involved in mediating brain repair and that the levels of endocannabinoid ligand 2-AG increases in all three brain regions after seven and fourteen days.
The researchers state in the study’s conclusion: “Improvement in working memory was associated with up-regulation of BDNF, GDNF, and G-CSF in the cerebral cortex, striatum, and hippocampus.
“In addition, levels of the most abundant endocannabinoid ligand, 2-AG, were increased in the THC-treated mice compared with controls.
“Increased brain levels of 2-AG, produced by inhibiting its breakdown, are reported to mediate recovery of working memory and fine motor function in a mouse model of TBI.
“Treatment of mice with THC following CCI resulted in time-dependent recovery of short-term spatial working memory. Further research is required to elucidate the role of the [endocannabinoid system] in mediating the recovery from injury.”
