Cannabis ingredient CBD could one day become an antibiotic
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Article by Kashmira Gander, via Newsweek
As scientists work to stem the tide of antibiotic resistance, the authors of a study believe an ingredient in cannabis could one day form the basis of a new drug.
Antibiotic, or antimicrobial, resistance is where bugs such as bacteria can survive drugs created to kill them, making infections difficult, or impossible, to treat.
Scientists in Australia found cannabidiol—the non-psychoactive ingredient marijuana— killed all the strains of bacteria they tested in a lab, including some which are highly resistant to existing antibiotics.
What’s more, the bacteria did not become resistant to the drug after being exposed for 20 days: the period when bacteria can survive some currently used drugs. The team tested a group of bacteria called Gram-positive: staphylococcus aureus— which causes conditions including the hospital bug MRSA—and streptococcus pneumoniae—which lead to pneumonia—as well as E. faecalis, which can be life-threatening in those with weak immune systems.
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