Cannabidiol (CBD) is an abundant non‐psychoactive phytocannabinoid in cannabis extracts which has high affinity on a series of receptors, including Type 1 cannabinoid receptor (CB1), Type 2 cannabinoid receptor (CB2), GPR55, transient receptor potential vanilloid (TRPV) and peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor gamma (PPARγ). By modulating the activities of these receptors, CBD exhibits multiple therapeutic effects, including neuroprotective, antiepileptic, anxiolytic, antipsychotic, anti‐inflammatory, analgesic and anticancer properties. CBD could also be applied to treat or prevent COVID‐19 and its complications. Here, we provide a narrative review of CBD's applications in human diseases: from mechanism of action to clinical trials.

Pluripotency associated transcription factor, SAL-Like 4 (SALL4), might play an important role in conferring totipotency on oocytes. In the present study, we screened SALL4 coding regions for mutations in 100 Han Chinese women with non-syndromic ovarian failure and discovered two novel non-synonymous variants in the SALL4 gene: c.541G>A (p.Val181Met) and c.2449A>G. (p.Thr817Ala). The former variant was located in an evolutionary conserved region of SALL4 protein and might affect its function. This is the first report to suggest that SALL4 might be a potential candidate gene of premature ovarian failure.

A new route to Roflumilast, a selective phosphodiesterase type 4 (PDE 4) inhibitor, is described. The synthetic procedure starts from 4-hydroxy-3-iodobenzoic acid to access the key intermediate 3-(cyclopropylmethoxy)-4-(difluoromethoxy)benzoic acid via copper-catalyzed hydroxylation and utilizes amide coupling to accomplish the synthesis of Roflumilast in 80% overall yield.

Macrodactyly is a congenital disease characterized by aggressive overgrowth of adipose tissue in digits or limbs frequently accompanied with hyperostosis and nerve enlargement; its pathological mechanism is poorly understood. Adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) have been extensively studied in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine as an ideal alternative substitute for bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs), but their pathological role is largely unknown. In this study, ASCs from macrodactyly adipose tissues (Mac-ASCs) were isolated and compared to ASCs derived from the normal abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue (Sat-ASCs) for cell morphology, surface marker expression, proliferation rate, and tri-lineage differentiation potential. Despite similar cell morphology and cell surface marker expression, Mac-ASCs showed higher cell proportion in the S phase and increased proliferation compared with Sat-ASCs. Moreover, osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation capacities were enhanced in Mac-ASCs, with reduced adipogenic potential. In addition, the expression levels of adipogenic genes were lower in undifferentiated Mac-ASCs than in Sat-ASCs. These findings unraveled enhanced proliferation activity, a regression in the differentiation stage, and greater potentiality of ASCs in macrodactyly, which could contribute to hyperostosis and nerve enlargement in addition to adipose tissue overgrowth in patients.