Active Ingredient In Marijuana Reduced Alzheimer’s-Like Effects In Mice

A substance that gives pot its kick appears to reduce the brain changes associated with Alzheimer’s disease – at least in mice.

In mice that had been genetically tweaked to develop symptoms like those of Alzheimer’s, animals that received a synthetic form of tetrahydrocannabinol for six weeks performed as well as healthy mice on a memory test, scientists reported Tuesday at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in San Diego.

Meanwhile, mice given a placebo instead of THC lost the ability to remember where to find the shallow spot in a pool of water.