Ben Patton
Senior Manager
@CincyBen
If you’re prone to take trips down the 420 highway on occasion, then a new study by researchers at Louisiana State University may interest you.
Should you ever find yourself with HIV, or if you’re like a friend of mine who is in constant fear of getting it, new research is showing that marijuana could in fact prevent the progression of the disease.
The main ingredient in marijuana, THC, has apparently had a “number of beneficial effects in animal models of HIV” and could prove beneficial to humans as well.
Here is an excerpt of a report that was published in the AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses journal:
In particular, THC given to monkeys over a 17-month period decreased damage to immune tissue of the gut, an important site of HIV infection. The team also found evidence that THC could do this by acting at the gene level.
HIV spreads by infecting and ultimately killing immune cells. However, the researchers observed higher levels of healthy immune cells in animals that received THC – something they noticed in a previous study as well.
In 2011, Dr. Molina and her colleagues found that monkeys treated with THC had lower levels of viral infection and better survival rates. They also experienced a spike in immune cells and less weight loss from the disease.
While Dr. Molina and her team have high hopes for the potential effects of marijuana on HIV, the study is still in progress. We will keep you posted, PopWrappers!
High five and happy Thursday!
Keep Up With PopWrapped On The Web!
http://www.PopWrapped.com
http://www.Twitter.com/PopWrapped
http://www.SoundCloud.com/PopWrapped
http://www.Popwrapped.Tumblr.com
http://www.Facebook.com/PopWrapped
http://www.Instagram.com/PopWrapped
http://www.Pinterest.com/PopWrapped
http://www.YouTube.com/PopWrapped
Author
