Investigating the efficacy of cannabis as a novel therapeutic modality for aggressive pediatric brain and nervous system tumors

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dc.contributor.authorMalach, Megan Shirley
dc.contributor.authorUniversity of Lethbridge. Faculty of Arts and Science
dc.contributor.supervisorKovalchuk, Olga
dc.contributor.supervisorKovalchuk, Igor
dc.date.accessioned2025-02-12T22:45:25Z
dc.date.available2025-02-12T22:45:25Z
dc.date.issued2024
dc.degree.levelPh.D
dc.description.abstractCannabis sativa is a plant that has been used medicinally for thousands of years. In recent decades, interest in cannabis as an anti-cancer therapy has gained interest and numerous preclinical studies have demonstrated the anti-cancer abilities of a variety of human cancer types. However, most of these studies have been in only adult cancers and tumors and have almost entirely used individual cannabinoids as treatments. Here, we demonstrate the anti-cancer abilities of a cannabis extract on models of two pediatric brain tumors, neuroblastoma and atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors. Neuroblastoma is an extremely common pediatric solid tumor of the nervous system, and its high-risk iterations pose a clinical problem requiring novel therapeutic solutions. Atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors are extremely rare solid tumors of the central nervous system that occur almost exclusively in children under 3 and extremely poor prognoses. Thus, the investigation of novel treatment strategies for this tumor is warranted. Here, we demonstrate that cannabis extract is able to reduce viability and induce apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in models of both tumor types, and that this effect is driven not via the constituent cannabinoids of the extract, but via the entourage effect, as individual cannabinoid and terpene components of the extract, whether alone or in combination, failed to reproduce the anti-cancer effects of the whole extract. We also demonstrate that two of these terpenes, citronellol and α-cedrene, are capable of inducing anti-cancer effects, including reductions in viability, small increases in apoptosis, and similar mechanisms of cell cycle arrest as whole extract. However, the effect of individual agents, even in combination, fail to recapitulate the observed anti-cancer effects of whole extract. Overall, this research demonstrates that investigation of whole-cannabis extracts is a novel and worthwhile pursuit for pediatric solid nervous system tumors in need of novel therapies.
dc.embargoNo
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10133/6976
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherLethbridge, Alta. : University of Lethbridge, Dept. of Biological Sciences
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Biological Sciences
dc.publisher.facultyArts and Science
dc.relation.ispartofseriesThesis (University of Lethbridge. Faculty of Arts and Science)
dc.subjectwhole-cannabis extracts
dc.subjectnovel therapies
dc.subjectpediatric brain cancer
dc.subjectpediatric nervous system tumors
dc.subjectnovel anti-cancer therapies
dc.subject.lcshDissertations, Academic
dc.subject.lcshCannabis--Therapeutic use--Research
dc.subject.lcshCancer in children--Treatment--Research
dc.subject.lcshNeuroblastoma--Treatment--Research
dc.subject.lcshTeratoma--Treatment--Research
dc.subject.lcshBrain--Tumors--Treatment--Research
dc.subject.lcshMateria medica, Vegetable
dc.subject.lcshApoptosis
dc.subject.lcshCancer--Growth--Regulation--Research
dc.subject.lcshTumors--Growth--Regulation--Research
dc.titleInvestigating the efficacy of cannabis as a novel therapeutic modality for aggressive pediatric brain and nervous system tumors
dc.typeThesis
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