Summary: A new study has identified cannabis-derived terpenes (giving plants a distinctive fragrance), which has been identified as an effective treatment for fibromyalgia and surgical pain. In preclinical mouse models, terpenes such as geraniol and linalool significantly reduced chronic pain, providing a promising alternative to opioid drugs, and avoiding the psychoactive side effects of THC.
Terpenes appear to act via the adenosine A2A receptor, indicating a potential sedation mechanism. These findings open the door to the development of new non-opioid treatment options for chronic and postoperative pain management.
Important Facts:
Effective Terpenes: Geraniol and linalool were the most effective terpenes in relieving fibromyalgia and postoperative pain. Opioid Alternatives: Terpenes may provide a safer alternative to opioids with no psychoactive side effects.
Source: University of Arizona
According to a study from the University of Arizona Health Sciences Research published in the Pharmacological Report, terpenes from the cannabis sativa plant could be a viable drug therapy for fibromyalgia and postoperative pain relief.
This paper builds on previous research led by Dr. John Strycher, a comprehensive member of pain and addiction, which demonstrated the pain-relieving properties of terpenes in models of inflammation and chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain.
“In our study, terpenes are not a good option to reduce acute pain caused by injuries, such as stabbing your toes or touching a hot stove.
“This study investigated the effects of terpenes in preclinical models of fibromyalgia and postoperative pain, expanding the scope of potential pain relief treatments using terpenes.”
Terpenes, a compound that gives plants aroma and taste, provide an alternative pathway to pain relief without the unwanted psychoactive side effects of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.
Streicher and the Research team tested four terpenes found at moderate to high levels in cannabis sativa: geraniol, linalool, betacaryophyllene, and alpha-humulene.
They found that each of the terpenes results in high levels of pain relief in a mouse model of postoperative pain and fibromyalgia. Geranioliol relieves the most important levels of pain, followed by linalool, betacaryophyllene, and alpha-humulen.
“In fibromyalgia, you don’t really understand what the pain condition is and there aren’t many great options to treat it,” Strycher said.
“Our findings show that terpenes may be a viable treatment option for fibromyalgia pain.
According to a study published in Healthcare (Basel) in 2023, fibromyalgia is a chronic musculoskeletal disorder that affects up to 5% of the world’s population.
The US Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Women’s Health and Human Services has around 4 million US adults suffer from fibromyalgia, which has more impact on women than men.
Pain after surgery spans the line between acute and chronic pain. Although the duration is usually short, it also includes physiological changes such as increased inflammation and sensitization of the body’s pain system that contributes to pain.
“Opioids do a good job of controlling postoperative pain, but can cause constipation that increases the likelihood of postoperative complications, such as adhesions,” says Streicher.
“We are always looking for better options. This study suggests that terpenes could become a new treatment for postoperative pain.”
A 2020 study published in the International Journal of Surgery shows that around 310 million major surgeries have been performed worldwide.
“The research being conducted by Dr. Streicher’s lab on Terpenes and the potential to help people suffering from chronic pain illustrate the importance of basic research.
“There are hundreds of unique chemicals made by plants, including undiscovered cannabis plants,” said Dr. Todd Vander, PhD, of the Comprehensive Pain & Addiction Center at U of A Health Sciences, a medical school.
“Nature is incredible to create unique chemical structures. Many of these chemicals are unknown in terms of their ability to support human health, illness and disability.
“A great example of the present is semaglutide, a drug sold under the brand name Ozenpic, which has a chemical structure isolated from the plant, which can cause very useful medicines through these discoveries, not from plants, but through Gira Monsters.”
This study also demonstrated that the mechanisms of the action of terpenes on postoperative and fibromyalgia pain are the same as previous studies. The effect of adenosine A2A receptor, a receptor that targets and blocks caffeine, suggests a sedative effect that could be the subject of future research.
Streicher was co-authored by Caleb Seekins. Caleb Seekins works as an undergraduate biochemistry student at Streicher’s Lab and currently holds a medical degree from the School of Medicine Tucson. Alyssa Wellborn graduated in 2024 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmaceutical Science. Abigail Schwartz received his PhD from Strycher’s lab in 2024.
Funding: This study was funded by the National Institutes of Health Award. R01AT011517.
About this pain and neuropharmacology research news
Author: Phil Villarreal
Source: University of Arizona
Contact: Phil Villarreal – University of Arizona
Image: Image credited to Neuroscience News
Original research: Open access.
“Choosing terpenes from cannabis sativa are antinociceptors in a mouse model of postoperative pain and fibromyalgia via the adenosine A2A receptor,” John Streicher et al. Pharmacological Report
Abstract
Selectable Terpenes from Cannabis sativa are antinociceptors in a mouse model of postoperative pain and fibromyalgia via the adenosine A2A receptor
background
Cannabis terpenes show the promise of pain management. Our lab found that terpene geraniol, linariol, β-caryophyllene, and α-humulene alleviates chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy via the adenosine A2A receptor (A2AR).
This suggests terpenes as potential non-opioid, non-cannabinoid therapies. This study investigated postoperative and fibromyalgia pain, expanding potential terpene applications to a variety of pain types.
method
Male and female CD-1 mice measured baseline mechanical sensitivity via von Frey filaments and underwent PAW open surgery or resurrection-induced fibromyalgia (0.32 mg/kg, SC). After pain was established, mice were administered 200 mg/kg of terpene IP, whose mechanical sensitivity was measured over a period of 3 hours.
To determine the potential mechanism of action, mice were administered the A2AR antagonist Istradophyllin (3.2 mg/kg, IP) 10 min before terpenes and mechanical sensitivity was measured. Hot plate painkillers were run as controls.
result
Terpene treatment causes a time-dependent increase in the mechanical threshold in mice from both pain models, most strongly in geraniol, and then in linalol or α-humulene, indicating that these four terpenes are antinociceptive in postoperative and in fibromyalgia pain.
Pretreatment with istradephyrin blocks antinociception and suggests that terpenes act via A2AR in these pain models. Terpenes did not affect the latency of the hot plate and eliminated non-specific motor effects.
Conclusion
These results indicate that terpene geraniol, linariol, β-caryophyllene, and α-humulene may be viable drugs for postoperative and for pain relief in fibromyalgia.
Their mechanisms of action via A2AR promote knowledge about their importance in pain treatment and promote them as targets for terpene drugs.
