Cannabidiol (CBD) inhibits nicotine metabolism and could therefore help smokers curb their urge to take a cigarette again, and thus reduce smoking, according to new American research.
- CBD inhibits a key enzyme in nicotine metabolism, called CYP2A6.
- The activity of this enzyme was inhibited by 50% with relatively low CBD concentrations.
- This could allow nicotine-dependent smokers to slow down their craving for more nicotine.
In a study whose results were recently published in the journal Chemical Research in Toxicologya team led by researchers from Washington State University (WSU) tested the effects of cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive component of cannabis, on samples of human liver tissue and cells.
They discovered that CBD inhibits a key enzyme in nicotine metabolism. For nicotine addicts, the slowing of the metabolism could allow them to wait longer before feeling the need to consume more of it, thus avoiding all the harmful substances present in cigarette smoke.
“The goal is to reduce the harms of smoking”
More research is still needed to confirm these effects in humans and determine dosage levels, but these results are promising according to the researchers behind the study. “The whole mission is to reduce the harm of smoking, which does not come from nicotine per se, but from all the carcinogens and other chemicals found in tobacco smoke”said Philip Lazarus, professor of pharmaceutical sciences at WSU and lead author of the study, in a communicated.
Although often considered less harmful, many other methods of nicotine delivery, including vaping, chewing tobacco or snus, also contain chemicals that can cause cancer or other diseases.
In this study, the researchers tested CBD and its primary metabolite, 7-hydroxycannabidiol, on microsomes from human hepatic (liver) tissue as well as microsomes from specialized cell lines that allowed them to individually focus on enzymes related to nicotine metabolism. A metabolite is an organic substance that enters into the metabolic process, that is to say the set of chemical reactions that take place inside each cell of a living being. A microsome is a very small particle of the part of the cell that surrounds the nucleus that can be isolated using a centrifugation method, using equipment rotating at a speed greater than 20,000 revolutions per minute.
You don’t need a lot of CBD to have an effect against nicotine
They found that CBD inhibits several of these enzymes, including the main one in nicotine metabolism, called CYP2A6. Other research has shown that more than 70% of nicotine is metabolized by this enzyme in the majority of smokers. The impact of CBD on this special enzyme appeared quite strong, inhibiting its activity by 50% with relatively low CBD concentrations. “In other words, it looks like you don’t need a lot of CBD to see the effect”explains Philip Lazarus.
The professor’s team is currently developing a clinical study to examine the effects of CBD in smokers, by measuring nicotine levels in their blood compared to smokers taking a placebo over a period of six to eight hours. They then hope to conduct a much larger study of CBD and nicotine addiction.
