New research shows that Cannabis blocks Covid-19 from binding to human cells. Credit: Bogdan, CC BY-SA 3.0New research indicates that the hemp compounds in cannabis are capable of stoping Covid-19 from entering human cells and infecting people.
The study, which was published in the Journal of Nature Products on Monday, found that cannabinoid acids attach to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, thwarting a key step in the virus’s process of infecting its hosts:
“That 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,” said Richard van Breemen, a researcher at Oregon State’s Global Hemp Innovation Center, College of Pharmacy and Linus Pauling Institute, in a statement.
