I recently treated myself to a good laugh, by watching a 1937 anti-marijuana propaganda film called Assassin of Youth.

For decades, marijuana was portrayed by the establishment as a scourge. But an increasing body of medical research shows that cannabis compounds are actually effective in fighting scourges. Cannabis has gone from assassin of youth, to assassin of diseases.

Latest case in point: A laboratory study published January 10 in the Journal of Natural Products shows that two cannabis compounds commonly found in hemp, cannabigerolic acid (CBGA) and cannabidiolic acid (CBDA), prevent coronavirus from entering cells by blocking a step the pathogen uses to infect people (see graphic):

Source: Journal of Natural Products

In the study, these cannabis compounds were able to bind to the spike protein in SARS-CoV-2, which is the same method used in vaccines and antibody therapy.

The compounds were tested in a clinical lab against the alpha and beta variants of COVID. The results represent a major breakthrough in the study of cannabinoids as medicine.

The lab study was conducted at Oregon State University and overseen by Richard van Breemen, a scientist with Oregon State’s Global Hemp Innovation Center, College of Pharmacy, and Linus Pauling Institute.

“[The study’s finding] means cell entry inhibitors, like the acids from hemp, could be used to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection and also to shorten infections by preventing virus particles from infecting human cells. They bind to the spike proteins so those proteins can’t bind to the ACE2 enzyme, which is abundant on the outer membrane of endothelial cells in the lungs and other organs,” stated van Breemen in a press statement.

Marijuana and hemp both contain the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), but they are distinct cannabis strains with unique chemical compositions and uses. Hemp is naturally high in cannabidiol (CBD) and low in THC; the reverse is true of marijuana.

A botanical cousin of marijuana, hemp has a slew of industrial, medical and consumer uses. The hemp industry received a major boost with passage of the 2018 Farm Bill. The sweeping agricultural legislation essentially decriminalized hemp on a national basis.

Green medicine…

The January 10 report makes a ringing endorsement of studying the efficacy of cannabis compounds and other natural substances as treatment for diseases:

“Natural products are the most successful source of drugs and drug leads in the history of pharmacology. Although combinatorial chemistry currently receives more emphasis for lead discovery by the pharmaceutical industry, nature continues to be a source of unique chemical structural diversity for new drug discovery.

Approximately two-thirds of new small-molecule drugs since 1981 have been natural products, derivatives of natural products, natural product pharmacophores, or mimics of natural products. Less than 10% of the world’s biodiversity has been evaluated for potential biological activity, so that many more useful natural lead compounds await discovery.”

Read This Story: Pot Is Poised to Catch Fire in 2022

The majority of the marijuana market encompasses adult-use (i.e., recreational) consumers, but the number of registered medical cannabis patients in currently legalized states is exploding.

According to New Frontier Data, the number of medical pot users is on track to reach 4.9 million by 2025. The sales of medical cannabis will grow by $8.7 billion between 2018 and 2025.

We’re witnessing a Golden Age of scientific research into the medical efficacy of marijuana. New reports attesting to the health benefits of pot are continually coming to light. Patients with chronic ailments and diseases that are unresponsive to conventional therapies are increasingly looking to marijuana as an alternative. That’s especially true in relation to invasive and addictive therapies.

During the COVID pandemic, consumers have increasingly turned to cannabis for recreational relief. When the pandemic is eventually over, the fondness for weed will remain entrenched. But as the above article makes clear, cannabis compounds also provide enormous medical benefits.

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John Persinos is the editor-in-chief of Marijuana Investing Daily. You can reach him at: mailbag@investingdaily.com. To subscribe to his video channel, follow this link.