COVID-19 can be prevented & treated by cannabis compounds, researchers claim in new study

Compounds in cannabis (marijuana) can prevent infection from the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 by inhibiting its entry into cells, a report published this week by researchers associated with Oregon State University has claimed. The study's findings were published online on Monday in the Journal of Natural Products under the title "Cannabinoids Block Cellular Entry of SARS-CoV-2 and the Emerging Variants."

The researchers discovered that cannabigerolic acid, or CBGA, and cannabidiolic acid, or CBDA, two cannabinoid acids often present in hemp varietals of cannabis, can bind to the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The molecules bind to the spike protein, preventing the virus from entering cells and causing infection, potentially opening up new paths for disease prevention and treatment, the study claimed.

Cannabinoids in hemp extracts have potential to prevent and treat COVID: Study

"Orally bioavailable and with a long history of safe human use, these cannabinoids, isolated or in hemp extracts, have the potential to prevent as well as treat infection by SARS-CoV-2," the researchers wrote in the study's abstract. 

Richard van Breemen, a researcher at Oregon State University's Global Hemp Innovation Center and Linus Pauling Institute, led the study, which included experts from Oregon Health & Science University. The cannabinoids investigated, according to Van Breeman, are common and widely available.

The spike protein is the same section of the virus that COVID-19 vaccinations and antibody treatments target. SARS-CoV-2 has three more structural proteins, 16 nonstructural proteins, and many compounds that researchers refer to as "accessory" proteins, all of which could be targets for medications developed to prevent COVID-19. According to the researchers, any element of the infection and replication cycle is a viable target for antiviral intervention.

Cannabinoids could be converted into medications to prevent or cure COVID-19

It added that the spike protein's receptor binding domain's interaction to the human cell surface receptor ACE2 is a crucial step in the cycle. Despite the need for more research, the researchers believe that cannabinoids could be converted into medications to prevent or cure COVID-19. The researchers also mentioned that study showed cannabis was effective against novel viral strains, such as Omicron, which is one of the key concerns for health officials and clinicians in the ongoing pandemic.

"The findings demonstrate that CBDA and CBGA are effective against the two variants we studied, and we expect this trend to continue with additional current and future variants. Resistant variations may still emerge amid widespread usage of marijuana, the researcher continued, but the combination of vaccination and CBDA/CBGA treatment should provide for a far more difficult environment for SARS-CoV-2," the researchers stated in their study.

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