28 comments

  • Aurornis 2 hours ago ago

    I only had time to skim the paper. Notably, the effect is concentration dependent and required high concentrations of THC. The chart shows it really starting in the 0.1uM range and then taking off in the 1uM range.

    I don’t know what levels are achieved during normal use but I did find some studies that successfully killed a lot of hippocampal neuronal cells after 6 days at 1uM range. So the levels of THC observed in this study appear to be in the same range where things start getting really disrupted in cells.

    In other words, don’t expect to replicate these results with normal recreational use.

  • jcranmer 38 minutes ago ago

    Too bad we've had like a half-dozen putative Alzheimer's drugs that clear amyloid beta that turn out to do nothing to slow or prevent Alzheimer's.

    Actually, I think even by 2016 we already had enough phase 3 drug failures that the amyloid hypothesis was severely called into question?

    • nikkwong 27 minutes ago ago

      That's not true. Monoclonal antibodies are on the market right now which slow the progression of the disease (by removing amyloid).

    • Retz4o4 8 minutes ago ago

      Zunveyl

  • cdata 2 hours ago ago

    This appears to be dated 2016. Did the preliminary results amount to anything?

  • rusakov-field 2 hours ago ago

    Man, too bad weed gives me bad panic attacks. Alzheimers is the scariest disease I know so maybe if the studies pan out in time and it becomes a standard preventative, I might consider trying again.

    But somehow I doubt it will be found to be that effective.

    • dmorgan81 2 hours ago ago

      Have you tried L-theanine? I also get panic attacks with weed, but L-theanine seems to help keep them at bay.

      • esperent 41 minutes ago ago

        I have tried l-theanine, didn't do anything that I could tell.

        But fortunately there's a much better solution for those of us who get anxiety from weed, it's called "don't smoke weed".

      • Loughla an hour ago ago

        I've tried everything and I still get panic attacks. I used to love smoking a small hitter about an hour before bed. I've always had insomnia and that was the one thing that actually helped me sleep. When it was illegal, I loved it. I would smoke 2 or 3 times a week just for sleep, and I was healthy and happy. . . Because sleep is important, and I never wanted to take sleeping pills because dependency.

        Now that it's legal and everywhere, I just get super fun panic attacks. I'm worthless, I'm failing as a parent, everybody hates me, you know, the normal anxiety attacks. Even Charlotte's Web that's SUPER low THC gives me panic attacks.

        It's like my body hates it when I'm happy? I would give anything to be able to fix this problem.

        • wafflemaker an hour ago ago

          Always thought that panic attacks were caused by too low CBD in regards to THC levels.

          Saw someone literally suggesting keeping a CBD vape pen just in case of a panic attack. Or a friend using it for heart palpitations.

          Wasn't the amount of THC concentration in resin seen as the indicator of potency? Then that amount was hacked through selective breeding, unbeknownst that not following with a complementary increase in amount of CBD will create an anxiety causing superdrug.

          I experienced it once - on a party in a country where CBD strains are legal to buy by anyone, as long as they contain ~0%THC. And high quality high THC strains can be bought at a pharmacy with a prescription.

          A friend rolled a 50%/50% joint, approx 0.5g total, and we proceeded to smoke it whole, just the two of us. I was surprised you could get that high without a shadow of a paranoia.

        • karim79 an hour ago ago

          I also get what I would describe as "near" panic attacks when I smoke (about once every two weeks, with friends). I realised that after about 15 minutes or so it cools down and I feel, perhaps, more relaxed than before I started. Purely anecdotal but I feel you. Maybe a bit of cooldown and good company helps with the paranoia.

        • R_D_Olivaw an hour ago ago

          So, I sort of get these from time to time, but I notice that it hits the worst when :

          1. I've eaten like crap. Things too heavy I'm grease, processed food, and red meats. When I'm rating cleaner, I don't feel as panicky

          2. If I feel the panic coming on, I HAVE to do some sort of aerobic exercise in that first 15 minute "induction" phase of smoking. Otherwise I'll carry the panic along through the entire session.

          FWIW, YMMV

        • squigz an hour ago ago

          Have you tried edibles or another method than smoking?

  • laughing_man an hour ago ago

    Do we still think clearing beta amyloid plaques will halt the progress of Alzheimer's? My impression is we're treating marker for the disease and not the cause.

    • Retz4o4 8 minutes ago ago

      Correct they don’t. It’s like removing the gravestones from the graveyard.

  • anjel 2 hours ago ago

    Pro: Salk Institute Con: Preliminary Research, In Vitro

    • magospietato 2 hours ago ago

      Con: from 2016 w. no followup?

    • whycome 2 hours ago ago

      Salk? You mean the vaccine guy? /s

      And also, apparently, the registered trademark?

      > The researchers found that high levels of amyloid beta were associated with cellular inflammation and higher rates of neuron death. They demonstrated that exposing the cells to THC reduced amyloid beta protein levels and eliminated the inflammatory response from the nerve cells caused by the protein, thereby allowing the nerve cells to survive.

  • colordrops 32 minutes ago ago

    Anecdotally, when I'm feeling scattered and foggy, when I take a big hit off of my vape pen, I go through a period of noticing how shaky my appendages are, and go through what feels like a physical process of the sensation of my mind "unwrinkling" or unfurling. I often wondered if something was being cleaned out in my brain because I usually feel a lot more calm and still afterward, thoughts more collected.

  • anonnon 27 minutes ago ago

    And yet, has anyone ever claimed regular marijuana use improved their memory?

  • ProjectArcturis 2 hours ago ago

    There are easily hundreds of compounds that can reduce beta-amyloid in vitro. This is a decade-old nothingburger.

  • bitwize an hour ago ago

    Get stupid now to avoid cognitive decline later? Not sure I like that tradeoff...

    • SecretDreams an hour ago ago

      As opposed to getting stupid now and getting cognitive decline later?

  • MarkusQ 2 hours ago ago

    Remove them and replace them with...Doritos?

    • MarkusQ an hour ago ago

      I seem to have touched a nerve.

      In my defense, it may have been a stupid joke but it's not as stupid as trying to prevent brain damage by taking cannabinoids at levels known to cause brain damage.