Cannabis compounds show promise in killing deadly fungal infections, Macquarie University study finds

New Delhi: In a study published in The Journal of Neglected Tropical Diseases (PLOS NTDs), researchers discovered that bioactive Cannabidiol (CBD) and Cannabidivarin (CBDV) killed harmful fungal pathogen. The compounds also killed dermatophytes that cause common skin infections, and much faster than existing treatments. The findings open a door to possible new treatments for these fungal infections.

Fungal infections affect more than one billion people around the world each year, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and around 53 million Indian suffer from fungal infections yearly.

Macquarie University’s Dr Hue Dinh, a postdoctoral research fellow in the School of Natural Science, and Associate Professor Amy Cain, resolved to tackle the growing threat of fungal infections with help from Professor Mark Connor and Dr Marina Junqueira Santiago from the Macquarie School of Medicine and collaborators at the Universities of Sydney and NSW.

Having worked in the field of antimicrobial resistance, Dr Hue Dinh knew that developing an entirely new drug and getting it to market could take decades. It made more sense to work with pharmacological compounds already approved for use in humans for other conditions, because their safety and mechanism of action are already well known.

Macquarie Medical School pharmacologist Professor Mark Connor, who has a strong background in researching cannabioids, joined the team in their quest to target the fungal pathogen, Cryptococcus neoformans, which causes deadly lung or brain infections.

Speaking of the study, Dr Dinh said, “Hundreds of natural compounds can be extracted from the cannabis plant, and we do not know which one’s work.

The researchers found two cannabinoids – cannabidiol and cannabidivarin – that both quickly killed cryptococcus neoformans in the laboratory, working even faster than current antifungal therapy.

They tested the compounds against 33 other fungal pathogens from clinical, veterinary and environmental settings. This revealed the cannabinoids were effective in killing a range of cryptococcus species as well as the fungal skin pathogens that cause athlete’s foot.

The final part of the study confirmed the cannabinoids could treat a fungal infection in a living organism – the Galleria mellonella (wax moth) larvae – bringing this treatment a step closer to patients.

“The pilot study is an exciting advancement in the search for effective topical treatments because research shows pathogens are less likely to develop resistance to cannabinoids compared to other antimicrobials” added Dr Dinh.

Intravenous administration of cannabinoids to treat systemic infections like lung or brain fungal infections will be more challenging, according to Dr Dinh, as cannabinoids aren’t easily dissolved into injectable formulations. Dr Dinh has high hopes for topical treatments for common skin infections – she and Associate Professor Cain are currently working with commercial partners to develop a product for over-the-counter use.

Dr Dinh stated, “If we can demonstrate that these ones work well for common infections, you could actually just get some CBD oil and then rub it on your skin to treat it.”