Freedom Lawyers of America

Scientists have created new compounds that act like cannabis on the
brain to reduce anxiety and depression -- but without the hunger or
the high.

By prolonging the punch of the cannabis-like chemicals that the brain
makes naturally, researchers from the United States and Italy have
shown in rat experiments that they can copy certain benefits of the
common street drug with far fewer side effects.

If the new compounds pass in clinical testing, these synthetic
cannabinoid cousins could herald a new generation of antidepressants,
offering the calm of marijuana without the munchies.

But such man-made versions are unlikely to supplant the desire of
many ill people for old-fashioned marijuana. The drug's many touted
medical uses are not simply related to mood. Some people praise
marijuana as a pain reliever and others, those with cancer and AIDS
in particular, rely on it to boost meagre appetites.

While researchers in this study did find that their synthetic
compounds had a modest impact on pain, they were primarily interested
in the effects on mood.

Daniele Piomelli, a pharmacology professor at the University of
California at Irvine, explained that he and his colleagues tested two
compounds that appear to work similarly to THC, tetrahydrocannabinol,
marijuana's main active ingredient, but far more gently.

"THC reduces anxiety by binding directly to receptors in the brain
and resulting in its familiar high sensation. The reaction is too
strong, creating marijuana's side effects," said Dr. Piomelli, a
senior author of the report, which is to be published in the January
issue of the journal Nature Medicine.

In the past decade, researchers have realized that THC is pleasurable
in part because it mimics a natural neurotransmitter in the brain
called anandamide, from the Sanskrit word for "bliss." This family of
brain chemicals appears to be involved in mood, pain and a range of
physiological functions.

Both THC and anandamide, for example, bind to the same brain
receptors.

Just as researchers of the 1960s and 70s discovered the brain's
opiate receptors and endorphins while studying the effects of
morphine, so too is marijuana research opening new chapters in
neurobiology.

Several scientists and drug companies, for example, have been trying
to develop drugs to exploit and enhance anandamide. Last year, Dr.
Piomelli's group published a report that they had discovered a brain
substance related to anandamide that may help to combat obesity.

In this study, Dr. Piomelli's team, which included scientists from
universities in Parma, Naples, and Rome, created two compounds to
block the brain enzyme that breaks down anandamides.

By preventing the breakdown, the researchers report that they were
able to keep higher, natural levels of these neurotransmitters in the
brain, which appeared to reduce signs of anxiety and the infamous
high in studies with rats.

Rats given the drugs, for example, squeaked less when isolated and
increased their exploration of otherwise intimidating wide-open
mazes. Meanwhile, the rodents showed no drop in body temperature, or
increase in appetite or lethargy -- all hallmark symptoms of a
cannabis high.

The compounds, dubbed URB532 and URB597, appear to work like Prozac,
the well-known antidepressant that also raises the brain's natural
levels of serotonin by blocking it from being recycled.

Still, Dr. Piomelli acknowledged, the new drugs are early in
development. "While the study's results are promising, the road from
laboratory to discovery to available medication is years long, often
winding, and definitely expensive," he said.