As the number of people affected by Covid continues to grow, so does the knowledge of how the virus works. An American scientific study has been published and its results are clear: some of the components of hemp could be effective against the SARS-Cov-2 virus.
Much has been written about Covid, but this time it's for the good news. A team of researchers from two universities (Oregon State University and Oregon Health and Science University) has concluded that hemp contains acids that prevent SARS-Cov-2 from entering healthy cells.
These two acids, cannabigerolic acid (or CBGA) and cannabidiolic acid (or CBDA), are said to be effective in combating certain variants, especially the Alpha and Beta variants.
CBDA and CBGA: molecules naturally present in the cannabis plant
CBDA and CBGA are part of the list of 120 molecules found in hemp and of the list of active principles that give this plant its recognised therapeutic properties. They are non-psychoactive cannabinoids.
CBDA is a component present in the cannabis plant, it is in fact the initial form of CBD. It is essential to its constitution, simply because it is when the cannabis plant grows that CBDA is transformed into CBD.
According to the published study, these active ingredients in hemp and cannabis allow :
-prevent the virus that causes Covid-19 from entering healthy human cells,
- or on an already infected person, to limit the spread of the virus.
A barrier effect?
The principle is simple: CBGA and CBDA block a step that the pathogen uses to infect people by binding to spike proteins on the virus.
To understand this principle, imagine two pieces of a puzzle that fit together. One of these pieces is one of the spike proteins present on the virus which, by nature, seeks to bind to another "piece". The second piece is the receptor on the membrane of a human cell. When these two puzzle pieces match, it creates a fusion between the cell membrane and the virus.
According to the American study, CBGA and CBDA bind to the chemical receptors of the virus, thus preventing it from fusing with human cells and thus contaminating them or spreading.
"CBDA and CBGA have the potential to prevent as well as treat SARS-Cov-2 infection".
Richard Van Breemen, researcher at OSU's Global Hemp Innovation Center.
The power is in the nature
The study assumes that the most powerful medicines are provided by nature. Since 1981, two thirds of new drugs are natural products or derivatives. For these researchers, the potential of certain natural molecules is unexplored, and therefore their benefits untapped!
For this reason, a range of molecules present in plants were analysed to study their impact on the spread of the Covid virus:
- red clover,
- wild yam,
- hops,
- liquorice,
- ...
An element present in round turmeric has been identified as having positive effects against SARS-Cov-2 (both during the early phase of infection and the spread of the virus). But it was cannabis that showed the highest affinity with the virus' peak protein.
Encouraging results against variants
According to the scientists, the data obtained against the Alpha and Beta variants are particularly encouraging. They are also optimistic about the efficacy of these molecules on the Omicron variant, which is particularly present at present, but this variant has not been specifically tested.
CBD: a regulator of inflammatory responses
The links between CBD and its beneficial effects on reducing inflammation andactivating the immune system had already been made by the scientific community.
In particular, there is this American study published in March 2021 which explains that CBD limits infection by the virus. Indeed, the cohorts of patients who consumed this type of cannabinoid were those in whom the effects of Covid were significantly lower than in the rest of the population.
The explanation? CBD is said to be a good regulator of stress and inflammatory response, a parameter that is particularly important to analyse since the severe forms of Covid result in a virulent inflammatory response.
Note: the type of CBD used in this study contains less than 0.3% THC, below the legal threshold for sale in Switzerland. As such, it is totally legal for consumption.
Several cannabinoids present in the cannabis plant have proven anti-inflammatory properties, which may therefore allow :
- reduce a number of pro-inflammatory cytokines
- and increase the production of interferons, a type of signalling protein that activates immune cells.
Our approach at Naturalpes
This is why we have developed the RAW range, which is a set of oils that are minimally processed compared to what is found in nature, thus containing all the molecules naturally present in cannabis, notably CBDA and CBGA.
This form ofoil has not been heated and therefore decarboxylated and is still completely identical to the plant harvested in the wild and then simply dried.
In this range, we use rawCBD oil extractions. In other words, after this stage (which is the first in our oil processes), the resulting oil still contains :
- all the chlorophyll,
- all fats,
- all waxes
- and all sugars
of the plant.
We offer three oils containing these active ingredients in acid form: Raw 5%, Raw 13% and Raw 20% in pen form.
At a time when the question of the source of the information that is disseminated is paramount, at Naturalpes, we are careful to document ourselves in the scientific literature and with the official media in Switzerland when we learn about the beneficial effects of CBD.