Study summary · research use only
Early detection of cannabinoids in biological samples based on their affinity interaction with the growth hormone secretagogue receptor
Plain-language summary
Paraphrased from the published abstract below — not a verdict on whether anything works.
This study (species not specified for the urine samples) examined early detection of cannabinoids using competitive binding assays with labelled ghrelin (GHR) against the growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHS-R1a). The abstract reports cannabidiol (CBD) and 11-nor-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid (carboxy-THC) acted as extracellular ligands for GHS-R1a, promoting ghrelin (GHR) binding, in contrast to synthetic ghrelin mimetics such as CJC-1295 or [D-Arg1-D-Phe5-D-Trp7,9-Leu11]-Substance P peptides, which acted as competitive inhibitors. In 1:4 diluted urine samples, the method showed linearity and sensitivity in the range of 5-30 ng/mL for both CBD and carboxy-THC, while GHR mimetics showed no interference up to 100 ng/mL. Results were compared against a gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry reference method.
Abstract
Herein we report on the early detection of cannabinoids in urine samples according to their affinity profiles in competitive assays with labelled ghrelin (GHR). We have demonstrated for the first time that cannabidiol (CBD) and 11-nor-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid (carboxy-THC) act as extracellular ligands for the growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHS-R1a), strongly promoting the binding of ghrelin (GHR), the endogenous ligand of GHS-R1a. The affinity profiles of CBD and carboxy-THC are significantly different from the profiles of synthetic GHR mimetics such as CJC-1295 or [D-Arg1-D-Phe5-D-Trp7,9-Leu11]-Substance P peptides, which are the most common interferents; the cannabinoids promoted the GHR/GHS-R1a interaction, while the ghrelin mimetics acted rather as competitive inhibitors. The analysis of 1:4 diluted urine samples proved that the proposed method displays good linearity and sensitivity in the range of 5-30 ng/mL for both CBD and carboxy-THC, whereas GHR mimetics display no interference at concentrations up to 100 ng/mL. The results were validated by comparison with the gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry reference method. CBD may exert the same promoting effect on the interaction of GHS-R1a with other GHR mimetics listed as performance-enhancing substances.
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