In this week's episode, we explore the use of marijuana (cannabis) as a pain relief medication. We go over the main psychoactive component of marijuana, THC, how it works, and how it interacts with neurons in the brain and body to lower our perception of pain.

References:

Rikard, S. M. (2023). Chronic pain among adults—United States, 2019–2021. MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 72. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10121254/

Knopp, K. L., Downing, A. M., Anthony, L., Chaterjee, S., Price, K., & Sparks, J. (2024). An innovative phase 2 chronic pain master protocol design to assess novel mechanisms in multiple pain types. Pain Reports, 9(6), e1203.https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11487222/

Grant, K. S., Petroff, R., Isoherranen, N., Stella, N., & Burbacher, T. M. (2018). Cannabis use during pregnancy: pharmacokinetics and effects on child development. Pharmacology & therapeutics, 182, 133-151. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0163725817302243

Rollston, C. (2020). The emergence of alphabetic scripts. A companion to ancient near eastern languages, 65-81. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119193814.ch4

Henson, J. D., Vitetta, L., & Hall, S. (2022). Tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol medicines for chronic pain and mental health conditions. Inflammopharmacology, 30(4), 1167-1178. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/S10787-022-01020-Z

Sokolaj, E., Assareh, N., Anderson, K., Aubrey, K. R., & Vaughan, C. W. (2024). Cannabis constituents for chronic neuropathic pain; reconciling the clinical and animal evidence. Journal of Neurochemistry, 168(11), 3685-3698. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jnc.15964

Borges, J. P., Mekhail, K., Fairn, G. D., Antonescu, C. N., & Steinberg, B. E. (2021). Modulation of pathological pain by epidermal growth factor receptor. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 12, 642820. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2021.642820/full

Apkarian, A. V., Baliki, M. N., & Geha, P. Y. (2009). Towards a theory of chronic pain. Progress in neurobiology, 87(2), 81-97. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0301008208001135

Bie, B., Wu, J., Foss, J. F., & Naguib, M. (2018). An overview of the cannabinoid type 2 receptor system and its therapeutic potential. Current Opinion in Anesthesiology, 31(4), 407-414. https://journals.lww.com/co-anesthesiology/abstract/2018/08000/an_overview_of_the_cannabinoid_type_2_receptor.5.aspx

Shahbazi, F., Grandi, V., Banerjee, A., & Trant, J. F. (2020). Cannabinoids and cannabinoid receptors: The story so far. IScience, 23(7). https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(20)30488-0

Vučković, S., Srebro, D., Vujović, K. S., Vučetić, Č., & Prostran, M. (2018). Cannabinoids and pain: new insights from old molecules. Frontiers in pharmacology, 9, 416167.