The reserchers of the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California says that from the results of their tests, it seems that the THC, the main active substance of marijuana and hashish, is efficient in blocking an enzyme in the brain that causes plaques to form. From this research it seems that the THC is many times more efficient than the drugs that are currently for sale. “I’m not at all suggesting you smoke pot, but I think it could have strong implications that molecules like THC could prevent fibrils or plaque formation” Kim Janda, a professor of chemistry and immunology at Scripps. Doctor Janda is for sure an unbiased source, and he’s working on developing vaccines against nicotine and cocaine.
The researchers believe they’ve found a way THC can directly impact Alzheimer’s disease pathology. The tests have been made only in the test tube, but Janda and his team are ready to go one step further. “The definitive study would be to get animals that have been bred to have early-onset Alzheimer’s and look at the long-term effects of chronic THC administration” concludes Janda.