ABSTRACT: Cannabinoids have been reported to alter the activities of immune cells in vitro and in vivo. These compounds may serve as ideal agents for adjunct treatment of pathological processes that have a neuroinflammatory component. As highly lipophilic molecules, they readily access the brain. Furthermore, they have relatively low toxicity and can be engineered to ... Continue Reading
cannabinoid receptors
STUDY: Neuropathogenic Disorders – Cannabinoids as Therapeutic Agents for Ablating Neuroinflammatory Disease
ABSTRACT: Cannabinoids have been reported to alter the activities of immune cells in vitro and in vivo. These compounds may serve as ideal agents for adjunct treatment of pathological processes that have a neuroinflammatory component. As highly lipophilic molecules, they readily access the brain. Furthermore, they have relatively low toxicity and can be engineered to ... Continue Reading
STUDY: Fetal cannabinoid receptors and the “dis-joint-ed” brain
ABSTRACT: Microtubule turnover in the growing axons is required for directional axonal growth and synapse formation in the developing brain. In this issue of The EMBO Journal, Tortorielloet al (2014) show that the microtubule-binding protein SCG10/stathmin-2 is a specific molecular target for a CB1 receptor-mediated effect of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ... Continue Reading
STUDY: Modulation of l-α-Lysophosphatidylinositol/ GPR55 Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) Signaling by Cannabinoids*
ABSTRACT: GPR55 is activated by l-α-lysophosphatidylinositol (LPI) but also by certain cannabinoids. In this study, we investigated the GPR55 pharmacology of various cannabinoids, including analogues of the CB1 receptor antagonist Rimonabant®, CB2receptor agonists, and Cannabis sativa constituents. To test ERK1/2 phosphorylation, a primary downstream signaling pathway that ... Continue Reading
STUDY: Cannabinoid 2 (CB2) receptor involvement in the down-regulation but not up-regulation of serum IgE levels in immunized mice
ABSTRACT: Marijuana cannabinoids such as Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) have been shown in experimental systems to bias T helper immunity towards Th2 and away from Th1. This effect if broadly applicable to humans could have important implications in Th2-mediated diseases such as allergy. In the current study, we examined the effect of cannabinoids on serum immunoglobulin IgE ... Continue Reading