Researchers in Italy and Britain have found another medical use of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. That lovely chemical in marijuana that gets tokers high may also fight super bugs.
Since the 1950's it's been known that
Cannabis sativa has chemical properties that act as antibacterial. The researchers just didn't understand how the plant's chemical makeup worked. That is rapidly changing as researched delve into research of the chemicals that make up the plant.
Giovanni Appendino of the University of the Eastern Piedmont and colleague's research has been published in The Journal of Natural Products. The researchers have been studying the antibacterial activity of the five most common cannbinoids. Their research shows promise that in the future these compounds will be able to be used against common multi-resistant bacterial strains.
Researchers are still uncertain as to how cannabinoids work. There will be future trials to see if they can be used assystemic antibiotics.
The best news from this research is that they may be used even sooner against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA as a topical agent.
