CBGA, the "mother of all cannabinoids", reduces seizures more effectively than CBD
The study tested the anticonvulsant effects of CBGA in different preclinical seizure models. Among several patterns the cannabinoid was considered more effective than CBD in reducing seizures
Published on 10/07/2021
Curation and editing Sechat, with information from Newatlas
A new Australian research is systematically investigating the anticonvulsant effects of a series of rare cannabis compounds. The study reports that cannabigerolic acid (CBGA), informally known as the "mother of all cannabinoids", may be more effective in reducing seizures than cannabidiol (CBD).
There are dozens of unique compounds in cannabis plants. Known as cannabinoids, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are perhaps the most well-known. Other compounds like tetrahydrocannabiforol (THCP) have just been discovered.
In 2018, a CBD formulation called Epidiolex became the first cannabis-derived drug to be approved for any medical use by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Epidiolex was found to reduce the frequency of seizures in severe early-onset childhood epilepsy.
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"However, many children with epilepsy continue to be treated with unregulated artisanal products extracted from the cannabis plant, often due to the high cost and limited availability of Epidiolex and, in some cases, a preference for extracts containing a 'full spectrum' of multiple phytocannabinoids and terpenoids instead of isolated CBD", wrote the researchers in the newly published study.
For several years, pharmacologists at the University of Sydney have been studying the individual anticonvulsant effects of various rare cannabinoids. This new study reports the effects of seven cannabinoids, with a particular focus on cannabigerolic acid (CBGA).
CBGA is often referred to as the "mother of all cannabinoids" because it is the precursor to many better-known cannabinoids, including CBD and THC. Every cannabis plant contains CBGA, but as it matures, this compound is converted into other cannabinoids. This means that CBGA levels are often very low in mature harvested cannabis, as it has already been transformed into other chemicals.
"Cannabinoid acids are abundant in cannabis, but have received much less scientific attention," notes Arnold. "We are just beginning to understand their therapeutic potential."
The study tested the anticonvulsant effects of CBGA in several different preclinical seizure models. In several patterns, but not all, CBGA was considered more effective than CBD in reducing seizures. Lead author Lyndsey Anderson says that CBGA did not reduce seizure activity in all animal models, suggesting that it is probably not as versatile as CBD, but was a superior anticonvulsant in models such as hyperthermia-induced seizures.
"We found that CBGA was more potent than CBD in reducing seizures triggered by a febrile event in a mouse model of Dravet syndrome," says Anderson. "Although higher doses of CBGA also had pro-convulsive effects in other types of seizures, highlighting a limitation of this cannabis constituent. We also found that CBGA affects many drug targets relevant to epilepsy".
Perhaps most interesting are the next steps of the research, which will begin to investigate the anticonvulsant effects of different combinations of cannabinoids. This touches on a controversial idea known as the entourage effect.
The entourage effect argues that the therapeutic benefits of cannabis are not just the result of individual cannabinoids, such as CBD, but are influenced by the broader interactions between the different compounds in the plant. Researchers have not yet clearly demonstrated the entourage effect in clinical studies, but Anderson believes that it is possible that new combinations of cannabinoids could lead to more effective treatments than any single compound.
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"We evaluated the cannabinoids one by one and now we are exploring what happens when you put them all back together," says Anderson. "There is a real possibility that all these individual anticonvulsant cannabinoids work better when combined."
