Although controversial and illegal in many countries, cannabis has been used for treating multiple sclerosis, a progressive autoimmune disease associated with excess cytokine production. It has been shown that the cannabinoids interact with the anandamide neuro-receptors, and they decrease the levels of TNF, IL-1, IL-6 and nitric oxide in nerve cells of mice with an MS like conditon. PMID:15941768 (cache), PMID:12813001 (cache).

Most of the research on cannabinoids and cytokines has been in nerve cells, less on the immune cells, and very little on the lungs.

A detailed paper titled The Cannabinoid System and Cytokine Network (cache) notes a number of studies where THC or THC derrived compounds inhibit TNF, but also cites other research showing that THC and related compounds in marijuana can increase TNF under some conditions.

Given the complexity and uncertainty of the research on this topic, it would be premature to reccommend THC as a therapeutic for H5N1 infection.

It has also been suggested that Echinacea, which is rich in alkamides, acts on the anandamide system, although the exact method has not been determined. PMID:16142631 (cache).

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