A recent SciTechDaily article noted a new potential use for the cannabis plant in the fight against COVID-19. A team of researchers at the University of Chicago showed a negative association with positive COVID tests in a sample of medical records for patients who were taking a specific FDA-approved cannabis drug used to treat epilepsy.
The researchers treated human lung cells with non-toxic doses of CBD for two hours before exposing them to the virus. They discovered that at high concentrations CBD inhibited the virus’ ability to replicate. They also found that the CBD had the same effect in other cell types, and for all three variants of the virus as well as the original strain.
It’s important to note that the CBD didn’t prevent the virus from entering the cell, but was effective at blocking replication early in the infection cycle. Now, the team wants to conduct clinical trials to explore the idea of using CBD as a preventative or early treatment option for COVID-19.
