Autophagy, a concept obscure to many, is a pivotal mechanism that is vital to sustain overall health. It is the body’s method of cleansing damaged, useless proteins, cellular debris, and organelles, enabling the preservation of cellular homeostasis and thwarting the emergence of diseases such as cancer, autoimmune diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders.

But what if we were to reveal a natural way to escalate autophagy and enhance health outcomes? Recent studies have indicated that the non-psychoactive cannabinoid, CBD, present in cannabis may possess the ability to encourage autophagy in cells, catalyzing interest in the plant’s therapeutic applications for an array of health conditions, including age-related diseases and cancer.

Introduction to Autophagy and Cannabis

What is Autophagy? Autophagy, a cellular process, is characterized by the breakdown and recycling of a cell’s components. It is an indispensable part of cellular and overall health. It plays an important role in maintaining the health of cells and the body as a whole by helping to remove damaged or unnecessary proteins, organelles and cellular debris. This can prevent the development of diseases such as cancer, neurodegenerative disorders and autoimmune diseases.

The Three Types of Autophagy

Autophagy encompasses three main forms – macroautophagy, microautophagy, and chaperone-mediated autophagy. Of the three, macroautophagy is the most extensively studied, where a double-membrane structure known as an autophagosome encapsulates and degrades cellular elements.

Cannabis and Autophagy – A Phenomenal Partnership

The endocannabinoid system (ECS), a sophisticated cell-signaling network, regulates various physiological processes, including autophagy. It is comprised of receptors, endocannabinoids produced by the body, and enzymes.

The role of cannabis in promoting Autophagy

Studies have established that cannabis, particularly non-psychoactive CBD can escalate autophagy in cells by elevating the levels of the protein, Beclin-1, crucial in the initiation of autophagosome formation. THC has also demonstrated the potential to trigger autophagy in specific cancer cells. This has led to interest in the potential therapeutic applications of cannabis in a variety of health conditions.

Potential Therapeutic Applications

Using cannabis to treat age-related diseases

Cannabis has the potential to treat age-related diseases by augmenting autophagy, which declines with age, slowing down the aging process, and preventing diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Cannabis and Cancer

Autophagy has a crucial role in cancer cell death, and cannabinoids have exhibited the ability to spur autophagy in cancer cells, making cannabis a possible therapeutic agent in the treatment of cancer.

Using cannabis to improve overall health and well-being

By promoting autophagy, cannabis may help to remove damaged or unnecessary proteins and cellular debris, which can improve one’s fundamental health.

Conclusion

In conclusion, autophagy plays a crucial role in sustaining cellular and overall health. The intersection of cannabis and autophagy holds immense potential, with CBD shown to escalate autophagy and THC demonstrating the potential to trigger autophagy in specific cancer cells. The plant may serve as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of age-related diseases and cancer and enhance overall health and well-being. Further research is necessary to unlock the full potential of this intriguing phenomenon.

Sources and Further Reading

Publications

1. “Autophagy in health and disease” by Noboru Mizushima and Daniel J Klionsky, Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, vol. 8, no. 11, 2007, pp. 962–974.
2. “Cannabidiol Induces Programmed Cell Death in Breast Cancer Cells by Coordinating the Cross-talk between Apoptosis and Autophagy” by Andreas Vlachos, et al, Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, vol. 13, no. 1, 2014, pp. 29–42
3. “The endocannabinoid system and autophagy: A promising partnership with therapeutic potential” by J.M. Fernández-Ruiz, et al, Autophagy, vol. 14, no. 7, 2018, pp. 1189–1202
4. “Autophagy in the nervous system” by Yuriy A. Sytnyk, et al, Journal of Alzheimer’s disease : JAD, vol. 63, no. s1, 2018, pp. S3–S12.
5. “The Role of Autophagy in Cancer” by David A. Kirsch et al, Cancer Research, vol. 74, no. 23, 2014, pp. 6875–6883
6. “Autophagy: Cancer, Other Pathologies, Inflammation, Immunity, Infection, and Aging. Vol. 1” by M.A. Hayat, (CRC Press, 2014)
7. “Autophagy and Cancer” by S.K. Kim et al (Springer, 2016)
8. “Autophagy in Health and Disease” by D.J. Klionsky (Springer, 2016)

Online Reading

Cannabinoid action induces autophagy-mediated cell death through stimulation of ER stress in human glioma cells

Autophagy: molecular machinery for self-eating

Cannabidiol promotes browning in 3T3-L1 adipocytes

The multiple roles of autophagy in cancer

Role of autophagy in aging: The good, the bad, and the ugly

On November 25, South Korea made history by becoming the first country in East Asia to legalize medical marijuana, albeit in a very limited form. This came as surprising news to many since their existing punishments for pot use are quite strict. Additionally, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety had previously said it would not support any marijuana use, but recently changed its tune.

Republic of Korea set to implement a limited medical cannabis market despite harsh recreational possession and use penalties that remain

Existing laws provide penalties of up to 5 years in prison for the possession or use of cannabis, as well as 100,000 million Korean won or about $88,000 U.S. dollars. They’ve even stated that Koreans using marijuana outside of Korea could be prosecuted criminally after returning home.

All this despite the existing law allowing for drugs such as opium, morphine, and cocaine to be used medically in the case of rare and incurable diseases and when patients have no alternatives. So, we think it’s highly appropriate that they made the change and will now allow cannabis as well.

The Health and Welfare Committee of the Republic of Korea proposed amendments to the Act on the Management of Narcotic Drugs that were passed by South Korea’s National Assembly on September 25, 2018.

Hemp has primarily been recognized as a hallucinogenic in the past, and its use is allowed only for government and academic research. Recently however, hematological treatment of some diseases has been proven. It is unreasonable to limit the treatment uniformly without consideration of medical efficacy or the degree of risk, and it is problematic to block treatment opportunities of domestic patients. [The reason for the amendment is] to allow hemp to be used for medical purposes in order to guarantee the rights and provide the opportunity of treatment for patients.

Health and Welfare Chairperson
Republic of Korea Bill Acceptance Letter for Bill 2016596
November 14, 2018
Translated from Korean

Patients hoping to gain access to their medicine would need to apply through the Korea Orphan Drug Center. Originally established to get expensive medications for rare and incurable diseases in the hands of patients, the center will now take up granting or denying medical marijuana licenses on an individual case basis.

In addition to the approval of the Korea Orphan Drug Center, patients would need to obtain a prescription from a licensed doctor. They will then have access to a very limited product selection, which are expected to be primarily options which are low in THC and high in CBD.

Details about exactly how the product will be produced and distributed have yet to be released, but it’s fully expected that the regulations will be very restrictive. Still, this is a big step for a country that has had such a firm stance against cannabis.

Learn more about the new South Korean medical cannabis laws

You can read the full details on the amendment to the AMND here, but the page and PDF downloads are in Korean. In order to make it a little bit easier for you to look into the details of these new laws, we’ve translated those documents and provided them as free downloads below.

Other regional countries likely to follow suit

South Korea was the second country in Asia to legalize medically, the first being Sri Lanka. There are also major pushes to do so in Malaysia and Thailand. Now that South Korea has taken the lead, it’s expected that many will follow.

South Korea legalizing medical cannabis, even if it will be tightly controlled with limited product selection, represents a significant breakthrough for the global cannabis industry. The importance of Korea being the first country in East Asia to allow medical cannabis at a federal level should not be understated. Now it’s a matter of when other Asian countries follow South Korea, not if.

Vijay Sappani, CEO of Ela Capital in Toronto
Via MJBizDaily

Hopefully the future does indeed hold more countries legalizing both medically and recreationally throughout Asia and the rest of the world.

Utah voters approved Proposition 2, The Utah Medical Cannabis Act, on November 6th, 2018. It passed by a significant majority of 52.75% to 47.25%, a difference of about 60,000 votes in an election with just over one million votes. But lawmakers already overwrote it on December 3rd, giving it far stricter rules before it ever had a chance to go into effect.

The Utah Medical Cannabis Act passed

The act was designed to create a process for patients to receive medical marijuana cards as well as stipulating conditions under which people are allowed to grow and sell the plant. 

The list of qualifying illnesses is a bit more restrictive than many other states we’ve seen legalize medically, but it’s a decent start and less restrictive than one might expect coming out of such a state.

Following legislative changes to the bill, it will only allow seven dispensaries statewide and will prohibit patients from growing their own supply, even if they are hundreds of miles from the nearest dispensary.

Despite voters lining up to voice their discontent with compromise, the bill was passed virtually unopposed by lawmakers, 60-13 in the Utah House and 22-4 in the Senate.

In effect December 1

The act contained a few changes that take effect almost immediately. Among them:

• Affirmative defense – when someone is prosecuted for a marijuana-related offense between the passing of Prop 2 and medical cards being made available, that individual may not be prosecuted as long as they assert that they would be eligible for a medical card when it is made available. (58-37-3.7)
• Probable cause – the visible presence of cannabis or paraphernalia no longer constitutes probably cause for a search. (26-60b-204)

Both of these went into effect December 1, 2018, and were not altered by the compromise bill.

The Utah Medical Cannabis Act

• In the original bill, individual counties weren’t allowed to ban dispensaries or grow facilities. (4-41b-405) The compromise bill effectively allows for this since there will be only seven total dispensaries.
• Landlords may not refuse to rent on the basis of a medical marijuana card. (26-60b-110). This is not affected by the compromise.
• Medical cannabis is exempt from sales tax. (59-12-104.7)
• Maximum of two ounces of flower or ten grams of concentrate per two-week period per licensed citizen. This would be tracked in a statewide database, so unlike some states, you would not be able to simply visit a different dispensary.

Changes no one asked for

Despite the LDS Church spending huge amounts in order to make their position on Prop 2 abundantly clear, voters still chose to pass it by a significant majority of 52.75% to 47.25%. Yet, the law that actually goes into effect will be much closer to what the LDS Church wanted all along than what voters actually approved and voted on.

The Utah State Legislature was already planning to overwrite the will of the people before Prop 2 even passed. Calling it a “compromise” (the existing legislation looked to already be a compromise heavily favoring opponents, but I suppose my bias is obvious), House Speaker Greg Hughes has been working with the sponsors of Proposition 2 and its major opponents such as the Utah Medical Association and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to produce a replacement bill.

The legislature convened on December 3rd for a special session to consider the bill. Given that over 90% of the legislature are members of the LDS church, it’s no surprise that the bill passed virtually unopposed, 60-13 in the House and 22-4 in the Senate.

“Compromise” Changes

The main effects of the compromise are to reduce the already too low number of qualifying illnesses, outlaw growing almost everywhere, and ensure that the dispensaries are a state-run monopoly much like the liquor stores in Utah.

The changes to proposition 2 completely removed the right of patients to grow cannabis on their own property. Only patients over 100 miles from a dispensary would have been allowed to grow their own, so this change only serves to deny medication to people who have no other access to it. What’s the positive effect of this? I’m stumped. People 100 miles from a dispensary are not likely to be in such close proximity that growing on your own property should be outlawed.

The new bill also eliminates private dispensaries. Instead of giving licenses, the state will run all cannabis stores as a government-owned, legally enforced monopoly enterprise. There will be only seven dispensaries, state-wide, and ten grow facilities.

Proposition 2 originally included specific provisions for licensing growers and sellers in a way that would not create such a monopoly. The effects of state-controlled stores are already well known and despised by Utah residents, as liquor stores cannot be privately owned there. The result is some of the highest liquor prices in the nation and liquor stores that are few and far between, and all woefully lacking in selection.

We can definitely expect to see very similar results in state-run dispensaries. Don’t be surprised when Utah has the highest weed prices in the nation, and the worst selection.

On top of these two already massive changes to what Utah voters approved, the new bill also alters the language which would have allowed medical professionals to recommend cannabis. Under the new phrasing, it’s quite possible that a medical practitioner could be prosecuted for prescribing marijuana. This is likely an unintentional oversight in the language of the act, but it opens up a whole new and ridiculous line of argument for overzealous prosecutors.

Backlash

The bill was rammed through following a five and a half hour hearing which took place at the Utah state legislature one week prior. At the hearing, nearly every public comment voiced was in support of Prop 2 being implemented exactly as it was voted on.

Former Mayor Rocky Anderson had scathing remarks for the legislature prior to their passing the bill. He said this in a statement about the possibility of legal action against the legislature:

Although initiative statutes may be amended or repealed by the Legislature, the almost immediate extreme undermining of numerous provisions of Proposition 2 at the behest of The Church of Jesus Christ is anti-democratic and contemptuous of the … recognition in the Utah Constitution that the people are to have the power to enact legislative changes

Former Mayor Rocky Anderson, attorney at law
via SLTrib

The changes did go through, and Rocky Anderson did indeed file his lawsuit that same day, almost immediately, tweeting this the following day:

Utah residents are keenly aware that West Wendover recently legalized recreational sales. At just 90 minutes from Salt Lake, For many Utah residents, that’s going to be less of a pain than dealing with the arcane Utah legislation.

And of course, it goes without saying that this legislation will be quite a boon to the black market.

On the bright side

Despite Proposition 2 not going into effect as it was voted in, even the so-called compromise will be miles better than the cannabis situation in South Korea. At least it provides some medicine to some people who need it. It’s at least a start, and hopefully things will continue to move in the right direction.

• View the full text of the original Utah Medical Cannabis Act
• View the full text of the newly revised Utah Medical Cannabis Act