What science says about CBD as an anti-viral agent. And, how prohibition is making a bad situation worse in the COVID-19 world !

With the worldwide death toll from the coronavirus rising exponentially, there is new attention to “accumulating evidence” that indicates “patients with severe COVID-19 might have a cytokine storm syndrome.” CYTOKINE - secreted by immune cells, cytokines are a group of proteins that regulate inflammatory responses to disease and infection. There are both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Overproduction or excess secretion of pro-inflammatory messenger molecules can trigger a dangerous cytokine storm and other aberrant conditions. A cytokine known as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFa), for example, is produced in excess in rheumatoid arthritis, a painful, autoimmune disease that afflicts 1.3 million Americans. The interaction between cytokines, immune cells, and the endogenous cannabinoid system plays an important role in neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration.

It’s well documented that stimulation of the CB2 Cannabinoid receptor by THC, and its endogenous counterparts, can suppress inflammation. Cannabinoid receptor signaling confers therapeutic effects by down-regulating inflammatory cytokine expression.

Although Cannabidiol has little direct binding affinity for the CB2 receptor, CBD also acts as a potent anti-inflammatory, reducing this cytokine production and inhibiting immune cell function. Secreted by immune cells, cytokines are a group of proteins that regulate inflammatory responses to disease and infection. There are both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines.

Characterized by intense immune overreaction in the lungs, this little understood syndrome can sicken and kill infected individuals. Respiratory distress is the leading cause of mortality in COVID-19 cases. The critically ill who survive intensive care may suffer long term lung damage, resulting in functional impairment and reduced quality of life.

Science Daily reports that a hyper-inflammatory cytokine storm, involving a surge of immune cells gone haywire, was likely the primary cause of death in several viral outbreaks, including the 1918-20 “Spanish flu” pandemic (which killed more than 50 million people) and, more recently, the H1N1 swine flu and the so-called bird flu.

Could cannabis calm a cytokine storm? Several laboratory studies indicate that cannabinoid compounds – in particular, cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) – are immunosuppressant. This would explain why medical cannabis is beneficial for people with autoimmune diseases and chronic inflammation.

Which begs the question: Could cannabis calm a cytokine storm? - The United States has been handcuffed by cannabis prohibition, and the federal government continues to thwart research that could shed light on the therapeutic use of cannabis and whole plant CBD-rich oil extracts. The federal stranglehold on cannabis research is the main reason why we know so little about CBD’s clinical potential as an antiviral remedy.

Cannabis prohibition is exacerbating the current crisis in other ways, as well, as we discuss later in this article. For now, let’s turn our attention back to cytokines and cannabinoids and know ---->CBD acts as a potent anti-inflammatory, reducing cytokine production and inhibiting immune cell function.

CBD for Viral Infections? - Could CBD be a viable candidate for reducing mortality in critically ill patients infected with COVID-19? A couple of dozen websites are already proclaiming that CBD has antiviral applications, as if this was an established medical fact. Also cited, a study, which found that CBD reduced neuroinflammation in a virus-induced animal model of multiple sclerosis. But they acknowledge that this could have more to do with CBD’s efficacy as an anti-inflammatory compound rather than direct antiviral activity. Similarly, anecdotal accounts of using cannabidiol to treat viral infections, such as shingles and Herpes, “are plausible on the basis of the anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties of CBD,” the scientists acknowledged, without asserting an intrinsic antiviral effect.Thus far, the results are encouraging COVID-19 fatalities both involve extreme immune overreactions.

Conflicting Data - Many therapeutic applications of CBD and THC are related to their anti-inflammatory prowess. But that’s not the whole story. The interplay between cannabinoids and the immune system is complex, adaptive, and bidirectional. In certain situations, cannabinoids can potentiate immune activity. University scientists demonstrated that regular cannabis use can increase white blood cell counts in immune deficiency disorders such as HIV, suggesting a pro-inflammatory, immune-boosting effect. That’s the exact opposite of what’s needed to mitigate a viral-induced cytokine storm.

Given the conflicting data on the impact of Cannabinioids on immune function, medical scientists are reevaluating their ideas about inflammation and immunosuppression. Project CBD: -A new wave of research and mounting anecdotal evidence points towards cannabinoids having an adaptive, immuno-modulating effect, rather than just suppressing immune activity. This ability of cannabinoids to both suppress and enhance immune function lends credence to the notion that the endocannabinoid system is involved in bidirectional immuno-modulation, keeping inflammation in check under healthy conditions but enabling an inflammatory response when needed to fight infection.

Dr. Garcia de Palau, a Spanish cannabis clinician, sums it up this way: “I believe [cannabis] is immuno-suppressive when there is a hyper-immune response, but otherwise it regulates and corrects the immune system. In fact, you could say it functions like the endocannabinoid system, bringing equilibrium to the organism.”

A Call for Solidarity

What does this mean, practically speaking, for those who are using CBD or cannabis during the COVID-19 pandemic? The International Association for Cannabinoid Medicine (IACM), based in Germany, issued a statement on the COVID-19 pandemic and the use of cannabinoids, noting that some laboratory studies suggest that cannabinoids may have antiviral effects. Project CBD, a U.S. ambassador of the IACM, endorses the association’s call for “solidarity during this time, especially with those who are particularly at risk from such an infection.” Don’t share “false information that is circulating on the Internet,” the IACM implores. “Help contain the spread of the virus by following government and health authority guidelines.”

But cannabis remains illegal under federal law, and cannabis prohibition is making a terrible situation even worse. The pandemic has magnified the damage wrought by U.S. drug policy, which continues to stymie scientific inquiry and impede medical advances by blocking therapeutic-oriented cannabis research. Consequently, we don’t have clear answers to key questions about cannabinoids and viral infections at a time of dire need. 

COVID-19 & Cannabis Prohibition

Cannabis prohibition is also introducing needless public health risks in other areas. According to The New England Journal of Medicine, the corona virus “is stable for several hours to days in aerosols and on surfaces.” That includes paper money and coins, according to Dr. Sanjay Maggirwar, chair of the George Washington University School of Medicine’s department of microbiology, immunology and tropical medicine. “Certainly with the coronavirus, cash handling is a concern,” As with restrictions on research, this practice is entirely unnecessary and could easily be remedied with swift legislative action on the part of Congress.

The Last Prisoner Project estimates that 40,000 nonviolent cannabis convicts are sequestered in state and federal penal institutions, and they’re doing time because of something that is no longer illegal in many states. The group is advocating for the swift release of all cannabis prisoners and any inmates who are over 65 or who have an underlying health condition. Proponents of criminal justice reform maintain that continuing to reduce prison populations should be an immediate priority if we are to slow the spread of a highly infectious disease, which, unlike the prisoners themselves, can’t be contained within prison walls.