Open Access

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Natural cannabinoids suppress the cytokine storm in sepsis-like in vitro model

Yishay Szekely, Merav Ingbir, Ohad S. Bentur, Ohad Hochner, Reuven Porat

Department of Medicine J, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

* Corresponding Author: Yishay Szekely,

European Cytokine Network 2020, 31(2), 50-58. https://doi.org/10.1684/ecn.2020.0445

Accepted 28 February 2020;

Abstract

Natural cannabinoids may have beneficial effects on various tissues and functions including a positive influence on the immune system and the inflammatory process. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of natural cannabinoids on the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated whole human blood cells. Levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were measured before and after exposure of LPS-stimulated whole blood to different concentrations of Cannabidiol (CBD) or a combination of CBD and Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) extract. LPS stimulated the production of the pro-inflammatory cytokines. Exposure to both CBD and CBD/THC extracts significantly suppressed cytokine production in a dose-dependent manner. Exposure to cannabinoid concentrations of 50 mg/mL or 100 mg/mL resulted in a near-complete inhibition of cytokine production. This study demonstrates that natural cannabinoids significantly suppress pro-inflammatory cytokine production in LPS-stimulated whole blood in a dose-dependent manner. The use of human whole blood, rather than isolated specific cells or tissues, may closely mimic an in vivo sepsis environment. These findings highlight the role that natural cannabinoids may play in suppressing inflammation and call for additional studies of their use as possible novel therapeutic agents for acute and chronic inflammation.

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