News Briefs July 2024
Cannabis Use Linked to Higher Heart Attack and Stroke Risk
A study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association suggests that smoking cannabis poses cardiovascular risks similar to tobacco. To make that determination researchers analyzed data from 430,000 U.S. adults ages 18 to 74. The participants answered health questions, including those related to heart disease and cannabis use. About 4% of the respondents reported daily cannabis use, which the researchers report significantly raises the risk of heart attack and stroke, even after accounting for tobacco use and other risk factors. Among those who never smoked tobacco, smoking cannabis daily was tied to a 49% higher risk of heart attack and a more than doubled risk of stroke. The survey data was collected through the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a national, cross-sectional survey performed annually by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But it isn’t just smoking cannabis that can harm the heart. The researchers state that any cannabis use (smoked, eaten, or vaporized) was independently associated with a higher number of adverse cardiovascular outcomes. The study had several limitations, including that cardiovascular conditions and cannabis use were self-reported. Nonetheless, this study adds to the growing body of literature that finds cannabis use and cardiovascular disease may be a potentially hazardous combination.
Cinnamon May Help Control Prediabetes
It seems that cinnamon has more to it than simply tasting good on toast and other foods. A UCLA-led study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition finds that cinnamon can help obese or overweight people with prediabetes to control their blood glucose. While previous studies have demonstrated that cinnamon can lower blood glucose in people with type 2 diabetes, others showed no significant results. And even studies showing a positive outcome were inconsistent in terms of the degree of effect and other factors. Therefore, the researchers of this new study carefully conducted a randomized controlled trial with 18 participants who were overweight or obese and had prediabetes. Participants were randomly assigned a capsule containing either cinnamon or a placebo for four weeks, followed by a two-week “washout” phase. After the two-week waiting period, the intervention was switched for another two weeks. Participants who had taken the cinnamon capsules in the first phase were given the placebo and vice versa. The researchers monitored blood glucose continuously and found that cinnamon significantly and consistently reduced overall glucose levels in the cinnamon intervention group compared with the placebo group. Adherence to the regimen was excellent among both groups, indicating that people may be more willing to take a cinnamon pill than a pharmaceutical.
Reverting Cancer Cells to a Non-Toxic State
A proof-of-concept study published in Nature presented a novel approach to treating certain aggressive cancers which lack a particular tumor suppressor protein. According to the researchers, loss of tumor suppressors is much more common than a protein gaining the ability to drive cancer. So, finding a way to intervene therapeutically in these tumors is a meaningful priority. For the study, the researchers analyzed rhabdoid tumors, which lack a key tumor suppressor protein called SMARCB1. They discovered that the protein DCAF5, which acts as a quality control mechanism in cells, becomes essential for the survival of rhabdoid tumors when the key tumor suppressor protein is missing. By either genetically deleting or chemically degrading DCAF5, the cancer cells were reverted to a non-cancerous state, a phenomenon that persisted even in long-term mouse models. The significance of this finding is that instead of killing cancer cells with toxic therapies, it may be possible in some cancers to reverse the carcinogenic state of cells by targeting specific proteins involved in the disease. This approach may potentially avoid the off-target toxicity associated with traditional cancer treatments such as radiation or chemotherapy. “We have demonstrated a proof of principle,” says senior author Charles W.M. Roberts, MD, PhD, Director, St. Jude Comprehensive Cancer Center. “Myriad types of cancers are caused by tumor suppressor loss. We hope we may have opened the door to thinking about new ways to approach targeting at least some of these by reversing, instead of killing, cancer.”
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