Cannabidiol (CBD) modulation of apelin in acute respiratory distress syndrome

Évila Lopes Salles, Hesam Khodadadi, Abbas Jarrahi, Meenakshi Ahluwalia, Valdemar Antonio Paffaro, Vincenzo Costigliola, Jack C. Yu, David C. Hess, Krishnan M. Dhandapani, Babak Baban

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

43 Scopus citations

Abstract

Considering lack of target-specific antiviral treatment and vaccination for COVID-19, it is absolutely exigent to have an effective therapeutic modality to reduce hospitalization and mortality rate as well as to improve COVID-19-infected patient outcomes. In a follow-up study to our recent findings indicating the potential of Cannabidiol (CBD) in the treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), here we show for the first time that CBD may ameliorate the symptoms of ARDS through up-regulation of apelin, a peptide with significant role in the central and peripheral regulation of immunity, CNS, metabolic and cardiovascular system. By administering intranasal Poly (I:C), a synthetic viral dsRNA, while we were able to mimic the symptoms of ARDS in a murine model, interestingly, there was a significant decrease in the expression of apelin in both blood and lung tissues. CBD treatment was able to reverse the symptoms of ARDS towards a normal level. Importantly, CBD treatment increased the apelin expression significantly, suggesting a potential crosstalk between apelinergic system and CBD may be the therapeutic target in the treatment of inflammatory diseases such as COVID-19 and many other pathologic conditions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)12869-12872
Number of pages4
JournalJournal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine
Volume24
Issue number21
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 2020

Keywords

  • ARDS
  • CBD
  • COVID-19
  • apelin
  • cannabidiol
  • inflammation

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Molecular Medicine
  • Cell Biology

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