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This study, published in Nature Communications, highlights the potential benefits of cannabidiol (CBD) in extending lifespan and improving symptoms in Leigh syndrome animal models. Leigh syndrome is a severe mitochondrial disease that affects children, causing cognitive and motor function decline and premature death. The researchers demonstrated that CBD improved cellular function in both mice and fibroblasts from affected individuals. The study suggests that CBD's antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticonvulsant effects could hold promise as a treatment option for Leigh syndrome patients.
A study led by the UAB Institut de Neurociències and published in the journal Nature Communications demonstrates in animal models how daily administration of cannabidiol (CBD), a substance obtained from the cannabis plant, extends lifespan and improves symptoms associated with Leigh syndrome. This severe mitochondrial disease affecting children is characterized by a progressive decline in cognitive and motor functions and premature death. The research group also demonstrated in both mice and fibroblasts from children with the disease that CBD improves cellular function.
Leigh syndrome is a rare mitochondrial disease particularly affecting the organs and tissues that require most energy: the muscles and nervous system. It is characterized by progressive neuromuscular decline and premature death, and there are currently no approved treatments. That is why it is urgent to find a solution for patients suffering from this disease.
Drs. Emma Puighermanal and Albert Quintana, researchers from the Laboratory of Mitochondrial Neuropathology of the Institut de Neurociències at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (INc-UAB), have spent years studying the disease. They seek to understand the processes causing dysfunction of mitochondria, organelles in charge of providing energy to cells, and to find therapies capable of reverting this.
In a study published in Nature Communications, researchers have now demonstrated that daily administration of CBD is a promising treatment option. Through its multiple action it provides antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticonvulsant effects, which improve the symptomatology and help recover cell functions in patients. The study was conducted with two different Leigh syndrome mouse models, as