Title:Endocannabinoid Receptors in the CNS: Potential Drug Targets for the Prevention and Treatment of Neurologic and Psychiatric Disorders
VOLUME: 18 ISSUE: 8
Author(s):José Antonio Estrada* and Irazú Contreras
Affiliation:Neurochemistry Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Toluca, Neurochemistry Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Toluca
Keywords:Endocannabinoids, endocannabinoid receptors, neuroinflammation, neurodegeneration, psychiatric disease, drug
targets.
Abstract:The endocannabinoid system participates in the regulation of CNS homeostasis and functions,
including neurotransmission, cell signaling, inflammation and oxidative stress, as well as
neuronal and glial cell proliferation, differentiation, migration and survival. Endocannabinoids are
produced by multiple cell types within the CNS and their main receptors, CB1 and CB2, are expressed
in both neurons and glia. Signaling through these receptors is implicated in the modulation
of neuronal and glial alterations in neuroinflammatory, neurodegenerative and psychiatric conditions,
including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic
lateral sclerosis, stroke, epilepsy, anxiety and depression. The therapeutic potential of endocannabinoid
receptors in neurological disease has been hindered by unwelcome side effects of current drugs
used to target them; however, due to their extensive expression within the CNS and their involvement
in physiological and pathological process in nervous tissue, they are attractive targets for drug
development. The present review highlights the potential applications of the endocannabinoid system
for the prevention and treatment of neurologic and psychiatric disorders.