What a viral study on cannabis and COVID really means

The internet is abuzz with a new study showing how two compounds in cannabis may have protective effects against COVID-19. But weed smokers shouldn’t be partying right away.

Researchers at Oregon State University have isolated and identified two naturally occurring compounds found in hemp, cannabigerolic acid (CBGA) and cannabidiolic acid (CBDA). Using chemical screening techniques, the scientists found that these two compounds have a molecular form that can bind to advanced SARS-CoV-2 proteins, thus preventing the virus from binding to cells – it’s the same basic principle that makes monoclonal antibody treatments effective. CBGA and CBDA could bind to alpha and beta variants of the virus, but researchers have not looked at other variants. The now viral peer-reviewed study was published in the Natural Products Journal Monday.

The newspaper received a flood of attention, even touring on late-night TV shows. “The whole time we’ve been listening to the CDC, we should have been eating CBD,” joked Jimmy Kimmel. Stephen Colbert said it was “great news for all the teenagers whose parents find weed in their bedrooms,” who are now saying things like, “It’s not mine. I just keep them for my friend, Tony Fauci. The study also inspired several viral tweets, such as “Raise your hand if you had ‘weed to the rescue’ on your 2022 pandemic bingo card.”

These jokes and celebrations are misguided – the study shows no evidence that smoking weed or consuming CBD gummies and other popular hemp products can protect or prevent COVID-19. CBGA and CBDA, the cannabis compounds mentioned in the research, are precursors of the compounds actually found in cannabis products: they are acids in hemp that are respectively transformed into CBG and CBD when cannabis plants are released. heated and dried to make marijuana.

“CBDA and CBGA are produced by the hemp plant as precursors to CBD and CBG, which are familiar to many consumers,” said Richard van Breemen, pharmaceutical scientist at Oregon State University. declaration. “However, they are different from acids and are not found in hemp products.” van Breeman also said VICE that “we know that CBD, CBG and THC are not active against the virus”.

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CBDA and CGBA also degrade at high temperatures, ruling out smoking as a means of ingesting the chemicals. If these compounds were to actually become drugs, in the long run they would have to be taken orally, possibly in pill form.

Experts are turning to social media to dispel myths about the protective abilities of smoking. In response to a viral tweet, endocannabinologist Rachel Knox tweeted: “This research is specific to acids, CBGA and CBDA in particular. People don’t smoke acids. You would need to consume them pre-decarboxylated raw / fresh or stabilized in a capsule or tincture.

Another important caveat to note is that this study did not involve any human clinical trials. The researchers performed laboratory tests and examined cultures of human epithelial cells. The team used these cells as models to show how the two compounds in cannabis could interfere with SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins and prevent infection. But what happens in a Petri dish or a test tube does not always apply to the human body. Until more research is conducted, especially in living humans, researchers will not know for sure what the protective value of these compounds, if any, is against COVID-19.

“We have no reason to believe that smoking weed is protecting you… Smoking anything is not a good idea during a pandemic affecting the lungs,” Peter Grinspoon, doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital and instructor at Harvard Medical School which writes regularly about cannabis, told Forbes. In addition, “these compounds should be tested in animals, then in humans, and effectively shown to be effective against COVID. It’s a long way off, assuming they work, which is by no means guaranteed, ”he said. “I don’t think a lot of molecules at this level actually turn into functional drugs.”