Ariella,
Here's an excerpt from the washington post.com:
"SCIENCE NOTEBOOK
Compiled from reports by Rob Stein and Joby Warrick.
Monday, July 6, 1998; Page A02
BRAIN CHEMISTRY: Marijuana's Preventive Properties A substance in
marijuana that does not have any mind-altering effects may be useful for
protecting the mind from the damaging effects of stroke and disease.
Scientists at the National Institute of Mental Health found that cannabidiol
appears to protect the brain cells of rats in experiments in the laboratory,
according to a report in the July 7 issue of the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences.
Aidan J. Hampson and his colleagues put cannabidiol into laboratory
dishes with rat brain cells that had been exposed to toxic levels of a brain
chemical called glutamate.
Strokes can cause the release of levels of glutamate that overstimulate and
kill brain cells. So-called antioxidants can protect against this process. In
the experiments, cannabidiol did exactly that, performing better than
vitamins C and E.
The findings suggest, the scientists say, that the substance may be useful for
protecting the brain from strokes, as well as brain diseases such as
Alzheimer's and Parkinson's."
Is the NIH reinventing the wheel? Dexanabinol (HU211) has been around a few years, synthesised in the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, commercialised by Pharmos in phase 2 trials, tested for alzheimer, nerve gas, bowel etc. All published. Now the NIH, Aidan J. hampson and his colleagues are trying to take credit for themselves? Why don't Pharmos and their PR co set the record straight??
Zvi
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