The usefulness of hemp is hard to underestimate, and it is a pity that the recreational drug use of a form of hemp has not been better separated from its commercial use in the minds of the authorities than it has. Here is a report that will open your eyes and make you stare!
Jarrow has just made both the seeds, and an excellent protein from Hemp available, which makes this research even more apropos - it might be a useful protective measure, if nothing else!
| Topic: | A Compound found in Cannabis May Prevent the Spread of Breast Cancer |
| Keywords: | CANCER, BREAST CANCER, METASTASIS - Cannabis, Cannabidiol, Chemotherapy |
| Reference: | "Cannabidiol as a novel inhibitor of Id-1 gene expression in aggressive breast cancer cells," McAllister SD, Christian RT, et al, Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, 2007; 6(11): 2921-7. (Address: California Pacific Medical Center, Research Institute, 475 Brannan Street, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA. E-mail: mcallis@cpmcri.org ). |
| Summary: |
In a study involving aggressive human breast cancer cells, cannabidiol - a compound found in cannabis with a low-toxicity profile - was found to block the activity of a gene called Id-1, thereby reducing the aggressiveness of the cancer cells. In previous research, the authors had determined that metastatic breast cancer cells were less invasive and less metastatic when Id-1 was down-regulated. In this study, cannabidiol (CBD) was found to down regulate Id-1 expression in aggressive human breast cancer cells; the concentrations effective at doing so correlated with the concentrations required to inhibit the proliferative and invasive phenotype of breast cancer cells. In a concentration-dependent manner, CBD inhibited Id-1 expression at the mRNA and protein level. According to the authors, the effects of CBD appear to result from the inhibition of the Id-1 gene at the promoter level. CBD did not inhibit invasiveness in cells that ectopically expressed Id-1. The authors c onclude that, "…CBD represents the first nontoxic exogenous agent that can significantly decrease Id-1 expression in metastatic breast cancer cells leading to the down-regulation of tumor aggressiveness." Given the limited therapeutic interventions available for the treatment of aggressive and metastatic breast cancer, and given the toxicity and other side effects associated with chemotherapy, these results offer hope that a non-toxic alternative to chemotherapy may be on the horizon.
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