Tag Archives: endocannabinoid system

Druggable Targets in Endocannabinoid Signaling

Posted on by

 “Cannabis and cannabinoid-based extracts have long been utilized for their perceived therapeutic value, and support for the legalization of cannabis for medicinal purposes continues to increase worldwide.

Since the discovery of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) as the primary psychoactive component of cannabis over 50 years ago, substantial effort has been directed toward detection of endogenous mediators of cannabinoid activity. The discovery of anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol as two endogenous lipid mediators of cannabinoid-like effects (endocannabinoids) has inspired exponential growth in our understanding of this essential pathway, as well as the pathological conditions that result from dysregulated endocannabinoid signaling.

This review examines current knowledge of the endocannabinoid system including metabolic enzymes involved in biosynthesis and degradation and their receptors, and evaluates potential druggable targets for therapeutic intervention.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32894511/

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-030-50621-6_8

Topical cannabis-based medicines – A novel paradigm and treatment for non-uremic calciphylaxis leg ulcers: An open label trial

Posted on by

“Non-Uremic Calciphylaxis (NUC) is a rare condition that often manifests as intractable and painful integumentary wounds, afflicting patients with a high burden of co-morbidity.

The Endocannabinoid System (ECS) is a ubiquitous signalling system that is theorised to be dysregulated within wound beds and associated peri-wound tissues.

Preclinical research has shown that the dominant chemical classes derived from the cannabis plant, cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids, interact with the integumentary ECS to promote wound closure and analgesia.

This is a prospective open label cohort study involving two elderly Caucasian females with recalcitrant NUC leg ulcers of greater than 6 months duration.

Topical Cannabis-Based Medicines (TCBM) composed of cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids were applied daily to both the wound bed and peri-wound tissues until complete wound closure was achieved.

Wounds were photographed regularly, and the digital images were subjected to planimetric analysis to objectively quantify the degree of granulation and epithelization. Analgesic utilisation, as a surrogate/proxy for pain scores, was also tracked. The cohort had a mean M3 multimorbidity index score of 3.31. Complete wound closure was achieved in a mean of 76.3 days. Additionally, no analgesics were required after a mean of 63 days.

The treatments were well tolerated with no adverse reactions. The positive results demonstrated in very challenging wounds such as NUC, among highly complex patients, suggest that TCBM may have an even broader role within integumentary and wound management.

This treatment paradigm warrants being trialled in other wound types and classes, and ultimately should be subjected to randomised controlled trials.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32875692/

“Topical Cannabis‐Based Medicines, applied to both wound beds and peri‐wound tissues, represent a promising novel, non‐invasive, and safe treatment option for NUC leg ulcers.”

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/iwj.13484

image

Endocannabinoid-Epigenetic Cross-Talk: A Bridge toward Stress Coping

Posted on by

ijms-logo“There is no argument with regard to the physical and psychological stress-related nature of neuropsychiatric disorders. Yet, the mechanisms that facilitate disease onset starting from molecular stress responses are elusive.

Environmental stress challenges individuals’ equilibrium, enhancing homeostatic request in the attempt to steer down arousal-instrumental molecular pathways that underlie hypervigilance and anxiety.

A relevant homeostatic pathway is the endocannabinoid system (ECS).

In this review, we summarize recent discoveries unambiguously listing ECS as a stress coping mechanism.

As stress evokes huge excitatory responses in emotional-relevant limbic areas, the ECS limits glutamate release via 2-arachydonilglycerol (2-AG) stress-induced synthesis and retrograde cannabinoid 1 (CB1)-receptor activation at the synapse. However, ECS shows intrinsic vulnerability as 2-AG overstimulation by chronic stress rapidly leads to CB1-receptor desensitization.

In this review, we emphasize the protective role of 2-AG in stress-response termination and stress resiliency. Interestingly, we discuss ECS regulation with a further nuclear homeostatic system whose nature is exquisitely epigenetic, orchestrated by Lysine Specific Demethylase 1.

We here emphasize a remarkable example of stress-coping network where transcriptional homeostasis subserves synaptic and behavioral adaptation, aiming at reducing psychiatric effects of traumatic experiences.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32872402/

https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/21/17/6252

Distinctive Evidence Involved in the Role of Endocannabinoid Signalling in Parkinson’s Disease: A Perspective on Associated Therapeutic Interventions

Posted on by

ijms-logo“Current pharmacotherapy of Parkinson’s disease (PD) is symptomatic and palliative, with levodopa/carbidopa therapy remaining the prime treatment, and nevertheless, being unable to modulate the progression of the neurodegeneration. No available treatment for PD can enhance the patient’s life-quality by regressing this diseased state.

Various studies have encouraged the enrichment of treatment possibilities by discovering the association of the effects of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) in PD.

These reviews delineate the reported evidence from the literature on the neuromodulatory role of the endocannabinoid system and expression of cannabinoid receptors in symptomatology, cause, and treatment of PD progression, wherein cannabinoid (CB) signalling experiences alterations of biphasic pattern during PD progression.

Endocannabinoids regulate the basal ganglia neuronal circuit pathways, synaptic plasticity, and motor functions via communication with dopaminergic, glutamatergic, and GABAergic signalling systems bidirectionally in PD.

Further, gripping preclinical and clinical studies demonstrate the context regarding the cannabinoid compounds, which is supported by various evidence (neuroprotection, suppression of excitotoxicity, oxidative stress, glial activation, and additional benefits) provided by cannabinoid-like compounds (much research addresses the direct regulation of cannabinoids with dopamine transmission and other signalling pathways in PD).

More data related to endocannabinoids efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetic profiles need to be explored, providing better insights into their potential to ameliorate or even regress PD.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32872273/

https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/21/17/6235

Meet Your Stress Management Professionals: The Endocannabinoids

Posted on by

Trends in Molecular Medicine (@TrendsMolecMed) | Twitter“The endocannabinoid signaling system (ECSS) is altered by exposure to stress and mediates and modulates the effects of stress on the brain.

Considerable preclinical data support critical roles for the endocannabinoids and their target, the CB1 cannabinoid receptor, in the adaptation of the brain to repeated stress exposure.

Chronic stress exposure increases vulnerability to mental illness, so the ECSS has attracted attention as a potential therapeutic target for the prevention and treatment of stress-related psychopathology.

We discuss human genetic studies indicating that the ECSS contributes to risk for mental illness in those exposed to severe stress and trauma early in life, and we explore the potential difficulties in pharmacological manipulation of the ECSS.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32868170/

https://www.cell.com/trends/molecular-medicine/fulltext/S1471-4914(20)30177-5?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS1471491420301775%3Fshowall%3Dtrue

Targeting Endocannabinoid Signaling: FAAH and MAG Lipase Inhibitors

Posted on by

Annual Reviews adds Remarq® across its collection of 47 journals – RedLink“Inspired by the medicinal properties of the plant Cannabis sativa and its principal component (-)-trans-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), researchers have developed a variety of compounds to modulate the endocannabinoid system in the human brain.

Inhibitors of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) and monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL), which are the enzymes responsible for the inactivation of the endogenous cannabinoids anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol, respectively, may exert therapeutic effects without inducing the adverse side effects associated with direct cannabinoid CB1 receptor stimulation by THC.

Here we review the FAAH and MAGL inhibitors that have reached clinical trials, discuss potential caveats, and provide an outlook on where the field is headed.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32867595/

https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-pharmtox-030220-112741

The interaction between the endocannabinoid system and the renin angiotensin system and its potential implication for COVID-19 infection

Posted on by

 Journal of Cannabis Research | Home“Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is spreading fast all around the world with more than fourteen millions of detected infected cases and more than 600.000 deaths by 20th July 2020. While scientist are working to find a vaccine, current epidemiological data shows that the most common comorbidities for patients with the worst prognosis, hypertension and diabetes, are often treated with angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs).

Body: Both ACE inhibitors and ARBs induce overexpression of the angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) receptor, which has been identified as the main receptor used by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to enter into the alveolar cells of the lungs. While cannabinoids are known to reduce hypertension, the studies testing the hypotensive effects of cannabinoids never addressed their effects on ACE-2 receptors. However, some studies have linked the endocannabinoid system (ECS) with the renin angiotensin system (RAS), including a cross-modulation between the cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1) and angiotensin II levels.

Conclusion: Since there are around 192 million people using cannabis worldwide, we believe that the mechanism underlying the hypotensive properties of cannabinoids should be urgently studied to understand if they can also lead to ACE-2 overexpression as other antihypertensive drugs do.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32835160/

https://jcannabisresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s42238-020-00030-4

Emerging Promise of Cannabinoids for the Management of Pain and Associated Neuropathological Alterations in Alzheimer’s Disease

Posted on by

Frontiers in Pharmacology (@FrontPharmacol) | Twitter “Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an irreversible chronic neurodegenerative disorder that occurs when neurons in the brain degenerate and die. Pain frequently arises in older patients with neurodegenerative diseases including AD. However, the presence of pain in older people is usually overlooked with cognitive dysfunctions. Most of the times dementia patients experience moderate to severe pain but the development of severe cognitive dysfunctions tremendously affects their capability to express the presence of pain. Currently, there are no effective treatments against AD that emphasize the necessity for increasing research to develop novel drugs for treating or preventing the disease process. Furthermore, the prospective therapeutic use of cannabinoids in AD has been studied for the past few years. In this regard, targeting the endocannabinoid system has considered as a probable therapeutic strategy to control several associated pathological pathways, such as mitochondrial dysfunction, excitotoxicity, oxidative stress, and neuroinflammation for the management of AD. In this review, we focus on recent studies about the role of cannabinoids for the treatment of pain and related neuropathological changes in AD.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32792944/

“Cannabinoids act by targeting several signaling processes, such as pain, abnormal processing of Aβ and tau, neuroinflammation, excitotoxicity, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial dysfunction, which play a pivotal role in the management of AD. Cannabinoids also ameliorate behavioral and cognitive dysfunctions. Therefore, due to these extensive medical uses of cannabinoid compounds, it can be said that targeting the endocannabinoid system can be a promising strategy to develop an effective therapy for the management of AD. Furthermore, cannabinoids may demonstrate a safe and reliable low-cost therapy, with limited side effects.”

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2020.01097/full

Structural and Functional Insights into Cannabinoid Receptors

Posted on by

 Trends in Pharmacological Sciences (@TrendsinPharma) | Twitter“Cannabinoid receptors type 1 (CB1) and 2 (CB2) are widely expressed in the human body, and are attractive drug targets in the prevention and management of central nervous system (CNS) and immune system dysfunction, respectively. Recent breakthroughs in the structural elucidation of cannabinoid receptors and their signaling complexes with G proteins, provide the important molecular basis of ligand-receptor interactions, activation and signaling mechanism, which will facilitate the next-generation drug design and the precise modulation of the endocannabinoid system. Here, we provide an overview on the structural features of cannabinoid receptors in different functional states and the diverse ligand binding modes. The major challenges and new strategies for future therapeutic applications targeting the endocannabinoid system (ECS) are also discussed.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32739033/

“Cannabinoid receptors as key components of the endocannabinoid system are involved in regulating a variety of physiological and pathological activities, and their ligands are regarded as potential drug candidates for the treatment of many diseases.”

https://www.cell.com/trends/pharmacological-sciences/fulltext/S0165-6147(20)30146-2?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS0165614720301462%3Fshowall%3Dtrue

Targeting Cannabinoid Receptors: Current Status and Prospects of Natural Products

Posted on by

ijms-logo “Cannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2), as part of the endocannabinoid system, play a critical role in numerous human physiological and pathological conditions. Thus, considerable efforts have been made to develop ligands for CB1 and CB2, resulting in hundreds of phyto- and synthetic cannabinoids which have shown varying affinities relevant for the treatment of various diseases. However, only a few of these ligands are clinically used.

Recently, more detailed structural information for cannabinoid receptors was revealed thanks to the powerfulness of cryo-electron microscopy, which now can accelerate structure-based drug discovery. At the same time, novel peptide-type cannabinoids from animal sources have arrived at the scene, with their potential in vivo therapeutic effects in relation to cannabinoid receptors.

From a natural products perspective, it is expected that more novel cannabinoids will be discovered and forecasted as promising drug leads from diverse natural sources and species, such as animal venoms which constitute a true pharmacopeia of toxins modulating diverse targets, including voltage- and ligand-gated ion channels, G protein-coupled receptors such as CB1 and CB2, with astonishing affinity and selectivity. Therefore, it is believed that discovering novel cannabinoids starting from studying the biodiversity of the species living on planet earth is an uncharted territory.”

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32709050/

https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/21/14/5064