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Review
. 2021 Nov 28;26(23):7216.
doi: 10.3390/molecules26237216.

Antimicrobial and Antiviral (SARS-CoV-2) Potential of Cannabinoids and Cannabis sativa: A Comprehensive Review

Md Sultan Mahmud  1 , Mohammad Sorowar Hossain  2   3 , A T M Faiz Ahmed  1 , Md Zahidul Islam  1 , Md Emdad Sarker  1 , Md Reajul Islam  1
Affiliations
Review

Antimicrobial and Antiviral (SARS-CoV-2) Potential of Cannabinoids and Cannabis sativa: A Comprehensive Review

Md Sultan Mahmud et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance has emerged as a global health crisis and, therefore, new drug discovery is a paramount need. Cannabis sativa contains hundreds of chemical constituents produced by secondary metabolism, exerting outstanding antimicrobial, antiviral, and therapeutic properties. This paper comprehensively reviews the antimicrobial and antiviral (particularly against SARS-CoV-2) properties of C. sativa with the potential for new antibiotic drug and/or natural antimicrobial agents for industrial or agricultural use, and their therapeutic potential against the newly emerged coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Cannabis compounds have good potential as drug candidates for new antibiotics, even for some of the WHO's current priority list of resistant pathogens. Recent studies revealed that cannabinoids seem to have stable conformations with the binding pocket of the Mpro enzyme of SARS-CoV-2, which has a pivotal role in viral replication and transcription. They are found to be suppressive of viral entry and viral activation by downregulating the ACE2 receptor and TMPRSS2 enzymes in the host cellular system. The therapeutic potential of cannabinoids as anti-inflammatory compounds is hypothesized for the treatment of COVID-19. However, more systemic investigations are warranted to establish the best efficacy and their toxic effects, followed by preclinical trials on a large number of participants.

Keywords: COVID-19; antibiotic resistance; antimicrobial; cannabinoid; cannabis; food-borne; plant pathogen.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
WHO global priority list of resistant bacteria [15].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Location and distribution of main cannabinoids receptors in the human body (adapted from [129]).
Figure 3
Figure 3
The impact of the cannabinoid system on the immune system in SARS-CoV-2 infection (adapted from [154]).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Potential effects of cannabis compounds on SARS-CoV-2 entry and replications (adapted from [160]).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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