July 2022    
         
         
 
     
  Budding potential  
     
  Although cannabis and cannabis-derived products are touted as natural treatments for a wide variety of conditions, such as pain, anxiety, and cancer, evidence for efficacy is sparse. Research on the controversial plant has been hindered by legal hurdles, but it’s a growing field of study, and recent changes to federal policy have lifted at least one roadblock.  
     
  CBD vs. COVID-19  
     
 
CBD oil
 
 
     
  (Pixabay/Erin Stone)  
     
 
     
  UChicago Medicine researchers have discovered a correlation between cannabidiol (CBD) and COVID-19. No, CBD has not been found to cure COVID, but it might be able to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection.  
     
 
  The ABCs of CBD  
 
       
  The team found that treating human lung tissue with higher concentrations of cannabidiol before exposing the cells to coronavirus suppressed viral replication. But before you start stockpiling bottles, take note: this research used CBD of far higher purity and concentration than most commercial products and does not include human clinical trials.  
     
 
 
  Plant problems  
     
 
     
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Marijuana may decrease male fertility.
 
     
     
     
 
     
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Research is usually conducted with adult men as participants, but cannabis affects women and adolescents differently.
 
     
     
     
 
     
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Studying marijuana’s effects is challenging: self-reported usage data is subjective, and the inability to mask the drug’s psychoactive effects makes a placebo control group impossible.
 
     
     
 
         
         
    Spotlight    
         
         
 
     
  High fidelity  
     
 
Glowing brain
 
 
     
  (Unsplash/Milad Fakurian)  
     
 
     
  A well-known side effect of cannabis use is memory impairment, but it’s not that simple.  
     
  How memory is affected depends on whether a person is under the influence while the memory is being made or when it is later recalled.  
     
 
 
  In case you missed it  
     
 
 
 
Our monster: Photo of Sgr A* provides evidence of our backyard black hole.
 
 
State of the art: Art and science share a common core: creativity.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
     
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