Subj: US CA: Cannabis May Help Combat Schizophrenia



Pubdate: May 18, 1999



Source: Orange County Register (CA)





CANNABIS MAY HELP COMBAT SCHIZOPHRENIA



IRVINE -- A unique study of 10 mentally ill patients suggests that

marijuana may help researchers treat yet another disease --

schizophrenia.



Researchers at the University of California, Irvine, found high levels

of a cannabis-like chemical in the cerebrospinal fluid of

schizophrenic patients, meaning the body may be producing the chemical

to fight the disease.



Previous research in animals has shown that the marijuana-like

chemical, anandamide, puts the brakes on dopamine, long suspected as a

cause of schizophrenia.



This does not mean schizophrenics should smoke marijuana -- even though

many say it eases their symptoms, said Daniele Piomelli, one of the

UCI researchers.



"The idea is to develop novel medicines that use marijuana as a model

- -- without the side effects," he said. "We want to activate some of the

cannabinoid receptors in the brain without producing the high, the

loss of memory and the lack of motor coordination."



Current medications for schizophrenia -- which affects 1 percent of the

population -- block dopamine production, but are not always effective

and have side effects.



Piomelli's group, whose results will be published next month in the

journal Neuroreport, will expand its study to 200 patients. But he

said it's possible that rather than relieve symptoms of schizophrenia,

anandamide might play a role in the disease.



A National Institute of Medicine study in March concluded that

marijuana smoke is harmful but that it is as effective as codeine in

reducing pain in cancer patients, reduces nausea and vomiting

associated with chemotherapy, and may increase appetite in AIDS and

Alzheimer's patients.