A new study found that cannabis-derived compounds, cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabidivarin (CBDV) may effectively treat various fungal pathogens. The findings were published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.
Over a billion people are affected by fungal infections globally, ranging from athlete's foot and yeast infections to potentially deadly lung infection pneumocystis pneumonia. At the same time, antifungal treatments are increasingly compromised by drug resistance and often have adverse side effects. While there is a need for new antifungal drugs, few are currently in clinical development.
In the present study, researchers evaluated the antifungal activity of five phytocannabinoids against multiple clinically relevant fungal pathogens with a focus on Cryptococcus neoformans, a WHO-listed priority fungal pathogen that causes meningitis when it reaches the central nervous system.
Ultimately, they found that CBD and CBDV killed Cryptococcus neoformans in the lab faster than current antifungal therapies. The compounds also killed dermatophytes faster than existing treatments.
"We demonstrated that the phytocannabinoids appear to work via disrupting biofilms and altering cell morphology, while clear impacts on metabolism and membrane production could be observed with comparative proteomics," wrote the researchers in their study.
The researchers next tested the ability of CBD to clear Cryptococcus neoformans fungal infection in Halleria melllonella (wax moth) larvae, a burn wound model. The compound significantly improved survival in treated larvae, demonstrating its ability to treat fungal infections in living organisms.
"The demonstrated efficacy of CBD and CBDV as broad antifungal agents, coupled with their established safety profile, makes them an exciting resource as a foundation for the development of future therapeutic interventions," added the researchers.
"If we can demonstrate that these ones work well for common infections, you could actually just get some CBD oil and then rub it on your skin to treat it." study authors, Dr Hue Dinh, a postdoctoral research fellow in the School of Natural Science at Macquarie University, said in a press release.
Sources: EurekAlert, PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases
