Reply #144: Oh look! After 5 seconds I found you all kinds of citations.

[Alexander]

Now quit your whining about how I didn't source things "properly".

You're obviously not interested in evidence, since it took me all of 5 seconds to find these.

"AIDS Weekly, p.19, June 28, 1993. (HIV positive marijuana smokers have an increased incidence of bacterial pneumonia compared to non-marijuana smokers.)

British Medical Association, Therapeutic Uses of Cannabis. 1997. P.48...."cannabinoids have been shown to have immuno suppressive effect ..... potentially damaging in individuals whose immune system is already compromised by HIV or chemotherapy."

Cabral, GA et al. Proc Soc Exp Bio Med 1986;182:181-186. (Marijuana causes decreased resistance to diseases such as herpes.)

Cabral GA et al. Adv Exp Med Bio 288: 93-105, 1991. (THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, causes immunosuppression.)

Cabral GA, Vasquez R. Cannabis: Physiopathology, Epidemiology, Detection. CRC Press 1993:137-153. (Delta-9-THC suppresses macrophage extrinsic anti-herpes virus activity.)

Caiffa WT, Vlahov D, Graham NM, Astemborski J, Solomon L, Nelson KE, and Munoz A. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 150:1493-1498, 1994. (Marijuana smoking increases the incidence of bacterial pneumoniae in AIDS patients. HIV positive smokers progress to full-blown AIDS twice as fast as non-smokers.)

Cusher et al. Cellular Immunology Vol 154:99-108, 1994. (Low levels of THC inhibited tumor necrosis factor thereby weakening the killing activity of lymphocytes against tumor cells. Marijuana's implication in a number of chronic diseases reflects its harmful impact on the immune system.)

Daaka Y, Zhu W, Friedman H, Klein T W. Induction of Interleukin-2 alpha gene by Delta-9-THC is mediated by nuclear factor kB and CBa cannabinoid receptor. DNA and Cell Biology 1997;16:301-309. (THC might augment AIDS development because of an increase in NK-kB which is known to activate the HIV genome and increase retro viral replication.)

Djeu J et al. Adv Exp Med Bio 288: 57-62, 1991. (THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, causes immunosuppression.)

Djeu et al. Drugs of Abuse Immunity and Immunodeficiency, 1991. (THC is able to interfere with the function of white blood cells taken from humans. Both neutrophils, which fight bacterial infection, and mononuclear cells of the immune system, which fight viruses, were suppressed by various concentrations of THC.)

Fleisher M, Winawer SJ, Zauber AG. Annals of Internal Medicine. 1991; 115:578-579. (Aspergillosis and marijuana.)

Gross G, Roussaki A, Ikenberg H, Drees N. Dermatologica 1991; 183:203-207. (Genital warts do not respond to systemic recombinant interferon alfa-2 treatment during cannabis consumption.)

Fligiel SF et al. Chest, 1997. (Marijuana smoking damages the cilia which protect the lungs.)

Ford and Norris, Journal of the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, Vol 7: 389-396, 1994. (This study on the effects of the use of alcohol and marijuana in the context of sexual relationships and the impact of these substances on the consistency of condom use by urban minority youth showed an increase in unprotected sex.)

Freidman H, Klein TW, Newton C, Daaka Y. Advances in Experimental and Medical Biology, Vol. 373, pp 103-113, 1995. (Individuals who chronically use marijuana may be more subject to adverse reaction to common bacteria and viruses in the environment than non-users.)

Hamadeh and associates. Chest, Vol. 94/2, pp.432-433, 1988. "Invasive aspergillosis has become a significant cause of death in immunosuppressed patients". Physicians should be aware of this potentially lethal complication of marijuana use in compromised hosts such as patients with AIDS or malignancies.)

Juel-Jensen, BE. 1972 Brit. Med. J. iv:296. (Cannabis and recurrent herpes simplex.)

Kusher DI, et al. Cellular Immunology Vol 154:99-108. 1994. Effect of the Psychoactive Metabolite of Marijuana, Delta 9 THC. (Study reports that test tube studies show that marijuana metabolites are capable of impairing the ability of human immune cells to kill tumors and destroy fungal cells.)

Lopez-Cepero M, Friedman M, Klein T, and Friedman J. 1986 J. Leukocyte Biol.39 : 679. (THC induced suppression of macrophage spreading and phagocytic activity in vitro.)

Miguez-Berbano and associates, Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 1994;34-1031. (Smoking tobacco or marijuana reduced antioxidant levels in HIV-infected patients. Vitamin E levels were significantly lower in marijuana users, as well as cigarette smokers, compared to non-smoking HIV infected subjects. "The results of this study indicate that both marijuana and cigarettes have a detrimental effect on vitamin E status of HIV-1 infected individuals. These findings are of particular concern in the light of the important role of Vitamin E in immune processes, inhibition of viral activation and the death of immune cells."

Mishkin EM, and Cabral GA 1985.

J Gen. Virol. 66: 2539. (Delta-9-THC decreases host resistance to herpes simplex virus type 2 vaginal infection in the B6C3F1 mouse.)

Murison G, Chubb CB, Maeda S, Gemmell MA and Huberman E. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 1987;84: 5414-5418. (Cannabinoids induce incomplete maturation of cultured human leukemia cells.)

Newton CA et al. Inject Infect Immun 62:4015-4020, 1994. (THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, causes immunosuppression.)

Nieman RB et al. AIDS 7:705-710, 1993. (HIV positive smokers progress to full-blown AIDS twice as fast as non smokers.)

Schwartz RH, Journal of Hospital and Community Psychiatry, Vol. 38, p. 531, May 1987. (Marijuana use is a factor in preparing the ground for HIV infection.)

Sidney et al. American Journal of Public Health, 87:585-590, Marijuana Research Review, 7/97. (Study reflected double mortality in AIDS patients who used marijuana.)

Spector S et al. Adv Exp Med Bio 288:47-56, 1991. (THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, causes immunosuppression.)

Tashkin D, Baldwin G. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine vol 156, 1997. (Cells from both marijuana smokers and cocaine smokers demonstrated severe limitation in their ability to kill bacteria and tumor cells. The cells involved, alveolar macrophages, are part of the immune system of the lung. They are responsible for the elimination of foreign substances such as tumor and infection.)

Taylor DN, et al. New England Journal of Medicine 1982; 306:1249-1254. (Salmonellosis associated with marijuana: a multistate outbreak traced by plasmid fingerprinting.)

Timpone et al. 1997 AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, Vol.13 No.4, Marijuana Research Review, 7/97. (Poor results were shown using THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, to treat AIDS wasting syndrome.)

Tindall B, et al. Aust N Z J Med 18:8-15, 1988. (HIV positive marijuana smokers have an increased incidence of bacterial pneumonia compared to non-marijuana smokers. Marijuana smoking increases the progression to full-blown AIDS in HIV positive persons.)

Transplantation, Vol. 61, June 27, 1996. (Marijuana smoke transmits aspergillosis, a fungus having up to a 90% fatality rate if contracted by transplant patients. Researchers have strongly warned against the use of marijuana in immuno-compromised patients such as those with AIDS, chronic granulomatous disease, bone marrow transplants and those receiving chemotherapy for small cell lung cancer.)

Voth EA, Schwartz RH. Medicinal applications of delta 9 THC and marijuana: a perspective. Annals of Internal Medicine 1997: 126:791-8. (Marijuana is not a panacea. It is an impure weed that introduces immuno compromised patients to bacteria, fungi, and other toxic complications. We recommend sticking with predictable medical therapies and not deviating from FDA approved medicine in exchange for herbal remedies.

Wallace JM and associates. Chest, Vol. 105:847-852. (Tobacco smokers had lower percentages of cells in their small airways that had the marker for CD4 or helper T-cells. Marijuana use had the opposite effect of lowering CD8 positive cells, so-called suppressor cells, at the expense of CD4 cells. Tobacco and marijuana have effects on immune cells and blood lymphocyte populations that differ from each other, both in type and magnitude.)

Wambach KG, Byers JB, Harrison DF, Levine P, Imershein AW, Quadagno DM, Maddox K. Journal of Drug Education 1992;22(2):131-46. (Substance use among women at risk for HIV infection.)

Watzl et al. Drugs of Abuse Immunity and Immunodeficiency, 1991. (THC is able to interfere with the function of white blood cells taken from humans. Both neutrophils, which fight bacterial infection, and mononuclear cells of the immune system, which fight viruses, were suppressed by various concentrations of THC.)

Watzl B et al. Adv Exp Med Bio 288: 63-70, 1991. (THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, causes immunosuppression.)

Whitfield RM, Bechtel LM, Starich GH. The impact of ethanol and Marinol/marijuana usage on HIV+/AIDS patients undergoing AZT, DDC, or DDI therapy. Alcohol, Clin Exp Res 1997; 21:122-127. (Marinol/marijuana resulted in lower CD4+ counts and elevated amylase levels within the DDI group. Marinol/marijuana use associated with declining health status in AZT and AZT/DDC groups but did not appear to have worsening health status at one year follow up.)

Zhu W and colleagues. The Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 274:1001-1007, 1995. (THC causes abnormalities in immune molecules.)"