STUDY FINDS MEDICAL BENEFITS IN MARIJUANA

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- A new study showing how the active ingredient in
marijuana works on the brain apparently backs claims that smoking pot
relieves pain.

Like morphine, the substance known as THC affects an area at the base of
the skull that blocks pain impulses, the University of California at San
Francisco study said.

The findings are in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.

They appear to give credence to the claim that marijuana has medical
benefits at a time when communities are considering whether to legalize pot
use for illnesses.

In laboratory experiments, researchers gave rats tiny doses of a synthetic
form of tetrahydrocannabinol, a cannabinoid, and then measured how long it
took the rats to move their tails from a heat source. Cannabinoids are the
major active ingredient in marijuana.

Researchers focused on a region deep in the brain called rostral
ventromedial medulla, or RVM, which researcher Ian Meng described as a
relay station for pain signals similar to the volume knob on a stereo.

THC, like morphine, turns down the volume -- minimizing the intensity of
pain sensations reaching other parts of the brain -- by switching off
certain cells.

That suggests that marijuana-like drugs might be developed as effective
painkillers without the unwanted side effects of opiates like morphine,
which is highly addictive and can cause nausea. Marijuana-like drugs, in
contrast, are less addictive, tend to counteract nausea and stimulate
appetite.

"I think in the future you'll see different kinds of drug combination
therapies, where you can use cannabis-like drugs with a lower dose of a
morphine compound and possibly reduce side effects," Meng said.

The findings were cheered by marijuana users who say the drug helps them
cope with diseases such as AIDS and cancer.

"These patients ... should not be going to jail," said Chuck Thomas of the
Marijuana Policy Project.

Five states and the District of Columbia have initiatives similar to
Proposition 215, the 1996 ballot measure that lets Californians with
doctors' notes grow and use marijuana for pain relief.


Checked-by: Mike Gogulski