International Cannabinoid Research Society (ICRS) Symposium
In late June, two hundred and ninety-seven delegates from 24 countries attended the 26th annual conference of the International Cannabinoid Research Society (ICRS). This year’s meeting took place in Bukovina, a Polish retreat nestled in the picturesque foothills of the Tatra Mountains.
The four-day science symposium featured 87 oral presentations and a hundred posters covering a wide range of topics germane to cannabinoid science and medicine.
Several reports shed light on potential therapeutic applications of CBD:
- Brain trauma. Spanish scientists report that CBD administered after a stroke reduces brain damage in animals, restores neurobehavioral performance, and prevents excitotoxicty from dopamine and serotonin release.
- CBD protects. Combining CBD with hypothermia (cooling) is more effective than hypothermia alone in protecting the brain function of newborn mammals after hypoxia-ischemia.
- Neuropathic pain. Temple University researchers determined that CBD and THC work synergistically for treating neuropathic pain from spinal cord injuries.
- Cancer. Italian scientists found that a CBD-rich cannabis extract potentiated the chemotherapeutic effects of standard Big Pharma meds for prostate cancer; another Italian study showed that CBD reduces the viability of white blood cancer cells and induces cell death in multiple myeloma cell lines.
- CBD for kids. Why do some pediatric epileptics respond remarkably well to CBD and others don’t? Douglas Smith with Medicinal Genomics spoke on genetic factors that influence the efficacy of CBD in catastrophic seizure disorders.
- Gaba Gaba hey! One of the ways that CBD imparts an anxiolytic or anti-anxiety effect is by enhancing GABA receptor transmission, according to Australian researchers. GABA receptors are directly activated by Benzos such as Clobazam, an anti-epileptic drug. Clinical research has shown that CBD raises Clobazam blood levels in pediatric seizure cases, indicating a drug interaction.
- CBD lowers blood pressure. Polish scientists showed that CBD relaxes human pulmonary and enteric arteries in animal models of hypertension.
- Gut check. CBD is protective against intestinal permeability in response to pro-inflammatory cytokines (stress hormones) in the colon.