Cannabis improves metabolic dysfunction and macrophage signatures in obese mice

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Obesity rates continue to rise, highlighting the need for new treatments that are effective, safe, and widely accessible. Aligned with the easing of restrictions on cannabis use, interest in its therapeutic potential is evolving. As such, we examined the effects of the cannabis plant with high cannabidiol (CBD) content or high Δ 9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content on metabolic and immune dysregulation in obese mice. Briefly, female C57BL/6 mice were randomized into four groups ( n = 15/group): 1 ) lean, 2 ) obese placebo, 3 ) obese CBD, and 4 ) obese THC. Lean mice consumed a low-fat diet for the study duration. Obese mice consumed a high-fat diet for 16 wk before a 4-wk cannabis (3 times/wk; high CBD = ∼4.2 mg/kg and high THC = ∼7.3 mg/kg) intervention. Consistent with our hypothesis, obesity increased homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), both of which were significantly mitigated by either high (10.5%) CBD or high (18.16%) THC cannabis ( P P NEW & NOTEWORTHY We examined the effects of the cannabis plant with high cannabidiol (CBD) content or high Δ 9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content on metabolic and immune dysregulation in obese mice. Both CBD and THC mitigated the obesity-induced increase in Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) and metabolic dysfunction-associate

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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