A new study published this week by the journal Cells has found that phytocannabinoids such as THC and CBD may be useful in skin rejuvenation and can significantly improve wound healing.
The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Lethbridg in Canada, the Universität zu Lübeck in Germany, the Vellore Institute of Technology in India and the University of Aberdeen in the UK, and its full text can be found by clicking here.
“In light of the increased popularity of phytocannabinoids (pCBs) and their appearance in beauty products without rigorous research on their rejuvenation efficacy, we decided to investigate the potential role of pCBs in skin rejuvenation”, states the study’s abstract.
Utilizing healthy and stress-induced premature senescent skin fibroblasts, the effects of pCBs on cellular viability, functional activity, metabolic function, and nuclear architecture were tested.
“Both delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) within the range of 0.5 µM to 2.0 µM increased cell growth in a dose-dependent manner while significantly decreasing senescence as measured by beta-galactosidase activity”, states the study. “Utilizing a scratch assay, both THC and CBD (2.0 µM) significantly improved wound healing in both healthy and SIPS fibroblasts.”
In addition, “THC and CBD altered nuclear architecture and mRNA levels of cell cycle regulators and genes involved in ECM production.”
Lastly, researchers compared the efficacy of THC and CBD with common anti-aging nutrient signaling regulators.
“Both THC and CBD were found to improve wound healing better than metformin, rapamycin, and triacetylresveratrol in replicative senescent CCD-1135Sk fibroblasts”, notes the study. “Therefore, pCBs can be a valuable source of biologically active substances used in cosmetics, and more studies using clinical trials should be performed to confirm the efficacy of phytocannabinoids.”
