New research into Alzheimer's disease suggests the active ingredient of marijuana may help "stave off" the disease, as Reuters puts it.

Specifically, scientists at the Scripps Research Institute in California discovered that delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) can prevent breakdown of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine - a process which leads to progressive "memory loss, impaired decision-making, and diminished language and movement skills".

THC is also, the team found, "more effective at blocking clumps of protein that can inhibit memory and cognition in Alzheimer's patients". Its report is published in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics. ®