MRSA Medical Marijuana Collision

Article via JS

Chemicals in Marijuana May Fight MRSA
Study Shows Cannabinoids May Be Useful Against Drug-Resistant Staph Infections

Researchers in Italy and the U.K. tested five major marijuana chemicals called cannabinoids on different strains of MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). All five showed germ-killing activity against the MRSA strains in lab tests. Some synthetic cannabinoids also showed germ-killing capability. The scientists note the cannabinoids kill bacteria in a different way than traditional antibiotics, meaning they might be able to bypass bacterial resistance.

In the study, published in the Journal of Natural Products, researchers call for further study of the antibacterial uses of marijuana. There are "currently considerable challenges with the treatment of infections caused by strains of clinically relevant bacteria that show multi-drug resistance," the researchers write. New antibacterials are urgently needed, but only one new class of antibacterial has been introduced in the last 30 years. "Plants are still a substantially untapped source of antimicrobial agents," the researchers conclude.

I recommend against googling for images of MRSA. The pictures are not pretty. Or maybe the public needs to see images of MRSA's destruction, perhaps it would move them to call for more research and funding into superbugs.

I don't think the alarm bell for drug resistant infections can be rung loud enough. The world is facing an epidemic. Only one new class of antibiotics has been developed in the last 30 years. As many articles have pointed out big pharma is off in search of the next billion dollar pill, another prozac or viagra and has little interest in developing new antibiotics. The federal government under the NIH, FDA or another of it's myriad of alphabet soup agencies should be leading the charge.

While we wait for the baton to be picked up; please, please remember to wash your hands frequently. It's the first line of defense against superbugs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The New Yorker, ran an article on Superbugs in it's September 11th issue.

Superbugs
The new generation of resistant infections is almost impossible to treat.
By Jerome Groopman

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Men's Journal, ran an article on Medical Marijuana in it's September issue.




Athletes Discover Pot For Pain
Marijuana works wonders on serious pain related to major illnesses. But could weed also be a better option than over the counter drugs for sports injuries and muscle soreness?
By Marc Peruzzi

The author used to take up to 20 Advil or "skier's Chiclets" a week to treat a back injury suffered while skiing. He eventually developed an ulcer attributed to Advil (ibuprofen), a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDs).

At the suggestion of an editor he decided to try replacing "Vitamin A (Advil)" with marijuana. He found that, "through my improvised clinical trial I discovered that, used in moderation, pot can be an affective painkiller for sports injuries. I was most impressed at how quickly it relieved muscle spasms . . . More than that, I found that smoking pot for pain might be a smarter choice than popping pills."

"Pot has anti-inflammatory properties similar to ibuprofen, and it won't give you an ulcer." -Dr. Donald Abrams, Professor of Clinical Medicine at the University of California - San Francisco

Unfortunately, the article is not available online.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Presidential hopeful Barack Obama, has said he would end federal raids on medical marijuana clinics. Obama's position was outlined in a San Francisco Chronicle, article earlier this year.

Next president might be gentler on pot clubs
Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer
Monday, May 12, 2008

"Voters and legislators in the states - from California to Nevada to Maine - have decided to provide their residents suffering from chronic diseases and serious illnesses like AIDS and cancer with medical marijuana to relieve their pain and suffering," said campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt.

"Obama supports the rights of states and local governments to make this choice - though he believes medical marijuana should be subject to (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) regulation like other drugs," LaBolt said. He said the FDA should consider how marijuana is regulated under federal law, while leaving states free to chart their own course.

Culver City in the News

Culver City made the news again this week, not for another restaurant opening but for a DEA raid.



Federal law supersedes state law.

"California voters approved an initiative in 1996 that made it lawful for individuals with prescriptions to use marijuana for medical purposes. Marijuana possession and sales are still unlawful under federal law, Pullen (DEA Spokesperson) said." - LA Times, 7/30/08

"Marijuana remains a controlled substance, and it is illegal under federal law to possess, dispense or cultivate marijuana in any form," - Sarah Pullen, DEA Spokesperson

Pot dispensary raids put tactics in question
Sandy Banks, Los Angeles Times, 8/2/08

DEA agents raid Culver City medical marijuana dispensary
Tami Abdollah, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 8/1/08

The action comes on the same day an appellate court in San Diego rules that federal law does not preempt California's medical pot law.

At the dispensary agents left behind trash, counters strewn with open and empty glass jars, piles of receipts thrown on the ground, upturned couch cushions, bits of marijuana on the edges of counters and an ATM with its doors torn open and emptied.

In the residents' rooms a safe was cut open, dresser drawers pulled open, and rumpled clothes and knickknacks thrown on the ground. An outdoor vegetable garden had plants uprooted, along with marijuana plants removed by the agents.

Los Angeles Councilman Bill Rosendahl was called to the scene by the owner and arrived several hours after the raid began. Rosendahl, standing outside the gate to the store's parking lot, said he was frustrated that there was nothing he could do to intervene. The dispensary straddles the boundary between Los Angeles and Culver City, Rosendahl said. Culver City police assisted federal agents at the scene.

"This is an action with the federal government, which is sad," Rosendahl said, "because these laws need to be revisited in Washington, especially the medical marijuana law. We're incarcerating people by the tens of thousands, we're destroying peoples' lives, and people who have a medical marijuana legitimacy are caught in the middle. It's a problem we need to resolve. This conflict is totally unacceptable."

He (Clyde Carey) said DEA agents searched and cuffed the roughly 25 people inside the building, which also includes four upstairs rooms. Then agents started searching the premises, removing computers, medicine and money, and using a steel cylinder battering ram to get into the upstairs bedrooms, Carey said.

Other Medical Marijuana News:

4 arrested in raid of medical pot dispensary in Orange
DEA says its agents seized about eight pounds of marijuana and $10,000 in cash from the Nature's Wellness Collective.
Stuart Pfeifer, Los Angeles Times, 7/30/08

Dr. Kush
How medical marijuana is transforming the pot industry.
David Samuels, The New Yorker, 7/28/08

Conflicting marijuana laws take stage in trial
San Luis Obispo County businessman is fighting prosecutors' contention that he is a drug trafficker
Scott Glover, Los Angeles Times, 7/26/08