Facing COVID-19 with the benefits of medical cannabis

By Pharmacology University

Since 2020 we have been in a pandemic that has affected our lives in multiple ways. Schools, businesses, religious institutions, and even government agencies have closed their doors in response to the effects of the coronavirus. That is why even today the most common question remains, what can we do to face the causes and consequences of COVID-19? Although opinions are polarized around the world regarding the progress of vaccines, there is a millenary use that has helped to prevent and confront diseases that affect the immune system of human beings: the therapeutic power of plants.

Due to the interest in natural compounds derived from plants, Cannabis sativa L. is a plant species with agronomic, industrial, and medical relevance, and has been used since the beginning of mankind. It has more than 500 compounds, including cannabinoids, terpenes, fatty acids, and flavonoids. Phytocannabinoids (known as cannabis-derived compounds) have been presenting medical and industrial prominence in recent decades. The Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are the most relevant phytocannabinoids due to their therapeutic characteristics and have been shown to play an important role in the treatment of various physiological and psychological conditions, helping to counteract infectious diseases caused by pathogenic microorganisms.

In this ebook Pharmacology University brings you how cannabis can influence the improvement and relief of symptoms caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, understanding the importance of the endocannabinoid system in the regulation of the immune system, the mechanisms of action of phytocannabinoid compounds in the treatment of the disease caused by COVID-19 and the sequelae caused by it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pharmacology University
• Release date: Apr 1, 2022

Pharmacology University

Pharmacology University is a company with more than 12 years of experience in educational systems focused on medicinal cannabis. We were born in Texas and since then we have had the challenge of transforming the social stigma of medicinal cannabis with the best tool in the world: Education.

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Copyright ⓒ 2021 PHARMACOLOGY UNIVERSITY

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INTRODUCTION

GENERALS ASPECTS OF COVID-19

CLINICAL FEATURES

MEDICAL CANNABIS MEDICINAL IN THE TREATMENT OF COVID-19

CONCLUSIONS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION

Humanity has been affected by the attack of several pathogenic microorganisms that have brought death and important economic consequences; it represents a problem in public health. Therefore, these microorganisms became one of the most attended factors by the medical and scientific community being one of the causes of major attention by the medical and scientific community. Aiming to control the advance of infectious agents and look for therapeutic alternatives to treat them, due to the seriousness of some symptoms they cause. Unfortunately, a global pandemic caused by COVID-19 has caused irreparable losses, from human lives to immeasurable financial losses.

The acute respiratory syndrome is one of the main complications linked to SARS-CoV-2, which compromises the lungs. Besides, other clinical manifestations derived from the infectious process could be present in other organs. The severity of the disease will depend on the immune response of each organism and, in some cases, by the preexistence of comorbidities.

Likewise, other important factors emerged such as isolation, quarantine, and social distancing, which forced people to take refuge in their homes, generating feelings of loneliness, worry, and uncertainty. In addition, the accelerated spread of the virus and as a measure to contain it caused high levels of anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders, i.e., the pandemic significantly influenced neurological and psychological disturbances affecting people's well-being and quality of life.

Therefore, many studies have been focused on the search for treatments to control this disease and help in the prevention, along with vaccines, the advance of COVID-19, its permanence in the body and the sequelae generated by it (including emotional problems), and for this, the therapeutic properties presented by plants have been widely studied, due to the presence of compounds with antiviral, antiproliferative and anti-inflammatory activity and in the treatment of neurological disorders.

Nowadays, Cannabis sativa L. is a plant that has had a great relevance at a therapeutic level given the presence of some compounds with pharmaceutic potential, possessing more than 500 compounds, highlighting cannabinoids, terpenes, fatty acids, and flavonoids. All over the years, phytocannabinoids have been used in the treatment of some psychological disorders thanks to their neuroprotective, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory action, this effect is achieved due to the presence of something known as the endocannabinoid system (ECS) in the human body, which is a network of intercellular signaling, and regulates