Cannabis May Improve Night Vision
A new study reveals a cellular mechanism by which cannabis may improve night vision. The study was published in open access journal eLife. The new evidence could pave the way for a cannabis-based treatment for retinitis pigmentosa and other degenerative eye disorders in the future.
Interestingly, cannabis does not dilate the pupils, instead cannabis constricts them. The CB1 receptor protein, however, is found in massive numbers inside the visual cortex.
The way cannabis improves vision is not yet completely understood, however, scientists are gaining by leaps and bounds. Pharmacologist M. E. West of the University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica first noticed the effects of cannabis on night vision 25 years ago. West noticed that fishermen who consumed cannabis and/or cannabis rum possessed “an uncanny ability to see in the dark,” which enabled the fishermen to work at nighttime. “It was impossible to believe that anyone could navigate a boat without compass and without light in such treacherous surroundings,” he wrote after joining the crew of fishermen, “[but] I was then convinced that the man who had taken the rum extract of cannabis had far better night vision than I had, and that a subjective effect was not responsible.”
Lois Miraucourt of the Montreal Neurological Institute applied synthetic cannabinoids to the eyes of African clawed toad tadpoles, Xenopus laevis, which are transparent and easy to assess. When the cannabinoids were applied to eye tissue, the retinal gangial cells became more sensitive to light. After investigation Miraucourt’s team discovered that this was due to the inhibition of the protein called NKCC1. The tadpoles that were given synthetic cannabinoids were more efficient at avoiding obstacles placed in a petri dish by scientists.
Beyond improving night vision, cannabinoids also have a neuroprotective effect on retinal cells and may be able to repair eyesight that is already damaged. We already know about the ways cannabis can help Glaucoma and decrease eye pressure. The study is helping us understand an entirely new method that cannabinoids can benefit mankind medically.
