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2024-11-11

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Cannabis activates specific hunger neurons in brain (news.wsu.edu)

submitted 10 months ago by MicroWave to c/science

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While it is well known that cannabis can cause the munchies, researchers have now revealed a mechanism in the brain that promotes appetite in a set of animal studies at Washington State University.

The discovery, detailed in the journal Scientific Reports, could pave the way for refined therapeutics to treat appetite disorders faced by cancer patients as well as anorexia and potentially obesity.

After exposing mice to vaporized cannabis sativa, researchers used calcium imaging technology, which is similar to a brain MRI, to determine how their brain cells responded. They observed that cannabis activated a set of cells in the hypothalamus when the rodents anticipated and consumed palatable food that were not activated in unexposed mice.

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[–] [email protected] -5 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Wooooooow such a… discovery…

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Had studies like this already found the same mechanisms?

[–] [email protected] -3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

You need them to know it?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Yes. That's what science is about...lol

[–] [email protected] 0 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Wow I’m not a scientist, and I know this 30 years ago … and I’m not the only one…

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago

Some people also "know" that going outside with cold hair causes people to catch a cold, but that's not true.

In addition, studies help determine to what extent and effect happens. Studies also help determine what and where any edge cases might be, which can be important for treating illnesses, for example.