The Endocannabinoid System as an Emerging
Target of Pharmacotherapy
click for PDF copy
by Pal Pacher, Sandor Batkai, and George Kunos
Laboratory of Physiologic Studies
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
National Institutes of Health
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Abstract
I. Introduction
II. The pharmacology of cannabinoids
A. Cannabinoid receptors and ligands
B. Cannabinoid receptor signaling
C. Endocannabinoids
III. The endocannabinoid system as therapeutic target in pathophysiological conditions
A. Diseases of energy metabolism
1. Endocannabinoids and appetite regulation
2. Endocannabinoids and peripheral energy metabolism
3. Obesity and associated metabolic abnormalities
4. Cachexia and anorexia
B. Pain and inflammation
C. Central nervous system disorders
1. Neurotoxicity and neurotrauma
2. Stroke
3. Multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury
4. Movement disorders (basal ganglia disorders)
a. Parkinson’s disease and levodopa-induced dyskinesia
b. Huntington’s disease
c. Gilles de la Tourette’s syndrome, tardive dyskinesia, and dystonia
5. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
6. Alzheimer’s disease
7. Epilepsy
8. Mental disorders
a. Schizophrenia
b. Anxiety and depression
9. Insomnia
10. Nausea and emesis
11. Drug addiction and alcohol disorders
a. Opiates
b. Nicotine
c. Cocaine
d. Alcohol
e. Psychostimulants
D. Cardiovascular and respiratory disorders
1. Hypertension
2. Circulatory shock
3. Myocardial reperfusion injury
4. Atherosclerosis
5. Asthma
E. Eye disorders (glaucoma and retinopathy)
F. Cancer
G. Gastrointestinal and liver disorders
1. Inflammatory bowel disease
2. Acute and chronic liver disease (hepatitis and liver cirrhosis)
H. Musculoskeletal disorders
1. Arthritis
2. Osteoporosis
I. Endocannabinoids and reproductive functions
IV. Future directions
Acknowledgments
References
Scientific American: The Brain's Own Marijuana 11/22/04
"... the brain makes its own marijuana, natural compounds called endocannabinoids (after the plant's formal name, Cannabis sativa). The study of endocannabinoids in recent years has led to exciting discoveries. By examining these substances, researchers have exposed an entirely new signaling system in the brain: a way that nerve cells communicate that no one anticipated even 15 years ago..."http://ripatients.org/cms/uploads/File/SCIAM- Brain's Own Marijuana.pdf
Professional Organizations and Research Centers
International Cannabinoid Research Society
http://www.cannabinoidsociety.org/
incorporated in 1991
over 500 members worldwide
International Association for Cannabis as Medicine (ICAM)
http://www.acmed.org/
founded in 2000
holds bi-annual symposium
Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research (CMCR)
http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu/
founded in 2001
17 approved studies as of June 2006