内源性大麻素及其受体在肝硬化领域的研究进展

肝硬化时,内源性大麻素在血液、肝脏、心肌及大脑中表达量增加,通过其受体和其他途径促进肝硬化的发生发展,提示内源性大麻素系统在肝硬化及其并发症中发挥着重要的作用,成为近年来肝硬化药物作用的新靶点,为肝硬化的治疗拓展新的视野,本文就内源性大麻索及其受体在该领域的研究进行综述.     

内源性大麻素系统与神经保护浅识

内源性大麻素系统包括大麻素受体、内源性配体以及参与其合成与降解的酶类,在人体内广泛分布,参与诸多生理和病理生理过程。新近报道内源性大麻素系统在中枢神经系统的许多疾病的病理生理过程中扮演重要的角色。对内源性大麻素系统的研究,不仅能阐明一些疾病的病理生理机制,还有助于新药研发并为疾病治疗提供新的方向。本文基于现有的文献报道,就内源性大麻素系统及其在一些中枢神经疾病特别是脑缺血和帕金森病的发病机制的新进展进行综述。     

内源性大麻素系统在胃肠道的作用(英文)

植物大麻用于临床已有几千年的历史,在许多胃肠道疾病如呕吐、腹泻、炎症性肠病、肠源性疼痛治疗中发挥重要作用。本文旨在综述内源性大麻素系统的组成及其在胃肠道活动中的调节作用,为进一步研究提供相关信息,并为通过调节胃肠道内源性大麻素系统治疗胃肠道疾病提供新靶点。     

新型靶向化合物——植物大麻素的生物合成途径及 研究进展

植物大麻素是具有生物活性的一系列萜类化合物的总称,被认为是大麻的专有成分。具有主要药理活性的植物大麻素为Δ~9-四氢大麻酚(Δ~9-tetrahydrocannabinol,Δ~9-THC)和大麻二酚(Cannabidiol,CBD),均以内源性大麻素受体为靶点,通过激活内源性大麻素系统而参与人体许多生理病理过程,具有广泛的治疗潜力。目前,Δ~9-THC、CBD及其类似物或组合制剂,已用于治疗癫痫、癌症化疗患者的呕吐、多发性硬化症痉挛和缓解神经性疼痛以及晚期癌症患者的疼痛。随着对Δ~9-THC和CBD应用价值的深度发掘和药用标准化制剂需求量增加,Δ~9-THC和CBD在制药工业中实现规模化生产迫在眉睫。通过综述近年来植物大麻素的药理学研究进展,植物大麻素生物合成途径和关键酶的作用机制以及制药工业中植物大麻素的生产策略,旨在探索利用合成生物学技术解决植物大麻素药源问题的潜力,为合成大麻素的微生物工程研发提供理论基础,促进药用大麻素的规模化生产。     

内源性大麻素系统与胃肠道相关疾病的研究进展

内源性大麻素系统(endocannabinoid system, ECS)由大麻素受体、内源性大麻素以及涉及内源性大麻素合成、运输和降解的酶所构成,广泛参与胃肠道的各种生理和病理生理过程,并且通过大麻素基本调节作用来维持体内肠道的平衡。本文综述了近几年关于内源性大麻素系统在正常胃肠功能与肠易激综合征、炎症性肠病和结肠癌等疾病中作用的主要研究进展,可为临床治疗胃肠道疾病提供有效的理论指导。     

内源性大麻素系统对皮层下运动中枢的调控作用

以往研究已证明,内源性大麻素系统广泛存在于中枢和外周神经组织中,并作为逆向信号分子在突触信号传递中发挥重要调节作用。本文就内源性大麻素系统对皮层下运动中枢的调控作用及相关机制进行综述,以期系统地论述皮层下运动中枢在躯体运动、动作选择和运动技能学习等高级神经活动过程中的突触和神经环路机制,并为相关疾病的治疗和靶向药物开发提供理论依据。     

大麻素在神经系统中的作用

自内源性大麻素系统发现以来,越来越多的研究表明大麻素对神经系统具有广泛的生理作用和临床应用价值.大麻素可以在脊髓、脊髓上及外周多个水平参与对痛觉的调制.同时,大麻素对运动功能、学习和记忆、神经内分泌等具有调制作用,也有研究表明大麻素对神经细胞具有保护作用.本文对大麻素在神经系统中的作用及其机制的研究进展作一简要介绍.     

内源性二氧化硫对心肌损伤的作用及机制

二氧化硫(sulfur dioxide,SO₂)是一种具有强烈刺激性气味的酸性气体，以往常被认为是有害物质。内源性SO₂是继一氧化氮(nitric oxide,NO)、一氧化碳(carbon monoxide,CO)和硫化氢(hydrogen sulfide,H₂S)之后的第四种气体信号分子，可以在心血管组织中内源性生成，并且在心血管系统调节中发挥着重要的生理和病理学作用。SO₂对心功能发挥剂量依赖性的负性肌力作用，其中三磷酸腺苷敏感钾通道参与其中。SO₂还能减轻各种有害刺激引起的心肌损伤，在心肌缺血-再灌注损伤和心肌肥厚中发挥重要作用，作用机制与SO₂的抑制炎症和抗氧化作用有关。此外，SO₂还可以抑制心肌细胞的凋亡和自噬。因此，内源性SO₂在维持心血管系统的稳态中发挥重要作用。本文将围绕内源性SO₂生成代谢、心血管生物学效应及对内源性SO₂/天冬氨酸氨基转移酶(asp...     

有证据:心脏存在肾素

已证明心肌细胞有血管紧张素Ⅱ结合位点,血管紧张素及其类似物对心肌具有正性变力作用,因而设想心肌可能存在局部性肾素血管紧张素系统。实验证明,雄性 CD-1小鼠及 SD 大鼠(sprague dawley rats)心脏有肾素样活性物质。这种心脏肾素和肾脏肾素具有类似的最适 pH,可被抗肾素抗体抑制。由于在体外分离出的雄性 Wistar-Kyoto 大鼠心室细胞仍可测到肾素样活性物质,以及低钠饮食小鼠心肌细胞和大鼠心脏中均存在肾素的 mRNA,因而认为肾素是在心肌局部合成的,不是来源于血液;同时还观察到硝苯吡啶可降低心室细胞肾素活性。心脏局部的肾素—血管紧张素系统的意义如下:(1)血管紧张素Ⅱ对心肌有正     

大麻植物中大麻素成分研究进展

大麻（Cannabis sativa）是一种古老的栽培植物, 它既是一种毒品原植物, 又是一种极具开发利用价值的经济作物。大麻素是大麻植物中特有的含有烷基和单萜分子结构的一类次生代谢产物, 目前已分离出70多种, 其中包含使人致幻成瘾的四氢大麻酚（THC）。该文就大麻植物中几种主要的大麻素成分： 四氢大麻酚、大麻二酚（CBD）和大麻环萜酚（CBC）的存在特征、含量变化、生物合成途径、各关键酶及其基因、遗传方式等方面的研究进行概括和归纳, 并展望了当前大麻素的主要研究方向, 对加快我国大麻素的相关研究及大麻育种具有参考意义。     

Active endocannabinoids are secreted on extracellular membrane vesicles

Endocannabinoids primarily influence neuronal synaptic communication within the nervous system. To exert their function, endocannabinoids need to travel across the intercellular space. However, how hydrophobic endocannabinoids cross cell membranes and move extracellularly remains an unresolved problem. Here, we show that endocannabinoids are secreted through extracellular membrane vesicles produced by microglial cells. We demonstrate that microglial extracellular vesicles carry on their surface N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA), which is able to stimulate type-1 cannabinoid receptors (CB₁), and inhibit presynaptic transmission, in target GABAergic neurons. This is the first demonstration of a functional role of extracellular vesicular transport of endocannabinoids.     

Cardiovascular effects of endocannabinoids--the plot thickens

Cannabinoids, the bioactive ingredients of the marijuana plant, are best known for their psychoactive properties, but they also influence other physiological processes, such as cardiovascular variables. Endocannabinoids are recently identified lipid mediators that act as natural ligands at cannabinoid receptors and mimic most of the biological effects, including the cardiovascular actions, of plant-derived cannabinoids. In experimental animals, the most prominent component of the cardiovascular effects of cannabinoids is prolonged hypotension and bradycardia. This review focuses on the possible mechanisms underlying these effects. The emerging evidence suggesting that endocannabinoids may be involved in the peripheral regulation of vascular tone under certain conditions is also discussed.     

Presynaptic specificity of endocannabinoid signaling in the hippocampus

Endocannabinoids are retrograde messengers released by neurons to modulate the strength of their synaptic inputs. Endocannabinoids are thought to mediate the suppression of GABA release that follows depolarization of a hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neuron-termed "depolarization-induced suppression of inhibition" (DSI). Here, we report that DSI is absent in mice which lack cannabinoid receptor-1 (CB1). Pharmacological and kinetic evidence suggests that CB1 activation inhibits presynaptic Ca2+ channels through direct G protein inhibition. Paired recordings show that endocannabinoids selectively inhibit a subclass of synapses distinguished by their fast kinetics and large unitary conductance. Furthermore, cannabinoid-sensitive inputs are unusual among central nervous system synapses in that they use N- but not P/Q-type Ca2+ channels for neurotransmitter release. These results indicate that endocannabinoids are highly selective, rapid modulators of hippocampal inhibition.     

Endocannabinoids in the central nervous system

The major psychoactive component of cannabis derivatives, delta9-THC, activates two G-protein coupled receptors: CB1 and CB2. Soon after the discovery of these receptors, their endogenous ligands were identified: lipid metabolites of arachidonic acid, named endocannabinoids. The two major main and most studied endocannabinoids are anandamide and 2-arachidonyl-glycerol. The CB1 receptor is massively expressed through-out the central nervous system whereas CB2 expression seems restricted to immune cells. Following endocannabinoid binding, CB1 receptors modulate second messenger cascades (inhibition of adenylate cyclase, activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases and of focal-adhesion kinases) as well as ionic conductances (inhibition of voltage-dependent calcium channels, activation of several potassium channels). Endocannabinoids transiently silence synapses by decreasing neurotransmitter release, play major parts in various forms of synaptic plasticity because of their ability to behave as retrograde messengers and activate non-cannabinoid receptors (such as vanilloid receptor type-1), illustrating the complexity of the endocannabinoid system. The diverse cellular targets of endocannabinoids are at the origin of the promising therapeutic potentials of the endocannabinoid system.     

Endocannabinoids and liver disease. IV. Endocannabinoid involvement in obesity and hepatic steatosis

Endocannabinoids are endogenous lipid mediators that interact with the same receptors as plant-derived cannabinoids to produce similar biological effects. The well-known appetitive effect of smoking marijuana has prompted inquiries into the possible role of endocannabinoids in the control of food intake and body weight. This brief review surveys recent evidence that endocannabinoids and their receptors are involved at multiple levels in the control of energy homeostasis. Endocannabinoids are orexigenic mediators and are part of the leptin-regulated central neural circuitry that controls energy intake. In addition, they act at multiple peripheral sites including adipose tissue, liver, and skeletal muscle to promote lipogenesis and limit fat elimination. Their complex actions could be viewed as anabolic, increasing energy intake and storage and decreasing energy expenditure, as components of an evolutionarily conserved system that has insured survival under conditions of starvation. In the era of plentiful food and limited physical activity, pharmacological inhibition of endocannabinoid activity offers benefits in the treatment of obesity and its hormonal/metabolic consequences.     

The Role of Monoacylglycerol Lipase (MAGL) in the Cancer Progress

In recent years, metabolism is talked highly important in cancer research, especially the lipid metabolism. Researchers believe that the de novo fatty acid synthesis plays an important role in tumor development, while many studies illustrated that Endocannabinoids have anti-tumorigenic actions, including anti-proliferation, apoptosis induction, and anti-metastatic effects, MAGL as an important decomposing enzyme of both lipid metabolism and endocannabinoids system, additionally as a part of a gene expression signature contributes to different aspects of tumourigenesis.     

Endocannabinoid modulation of sympathetic and cardiovascular responses to acute stress in the periaqueductal gray of the rat

Activation of the sympathetic nervous system is fundamental to the coordinated response to stress or danger. The midbrain periaqueductal gray (PAG) contains the neural substrate required to recruit the sympathetic nervous system and organize the physiological and behavioral responses required to respond to imposed challenges. Endocannabinoids have been shown to influence associated behavioral responses. The defense response was used in this study as a working model to examine endocannabinoid modulation of the sympathetic response to acute stress in the anesthetized rat. Microinjection of the cannabinoid 1 (CB1) receptor agonist anandamide into the defense pathway of the dorsal PAG could elicit an increase in renal sympathetic nerve activity and blood pressure, twitching of the whiskers, and movement of the limbs. The response was attenuated by prior microinjection of the CB1 receptor antagonist AM-281 at the same site. Electrical stimulation of the hypothalamic defense area could evoke similar sympathoexcitatory and pressor responses, which were significantly attenuated by microinjection of AM-281 into the dorsal PAG. These data indicate that endocannabinoids can modulate the sympathetic and cardiovascular components of the acute stress response via CB1 receptors at the level of the PAG.     

Endocannabinoids measurement in human saliva as potential biomarker of obesity

Background

The discovery of the endocannabinoid system and of its role in the regulation of energy balance has significantly advanced our understanding of the physiopathological mechanisms leading to obesity and type 2 diabetes. New knowledge on the role of this system in humans has been acquired by measuring blood endocannabinoids. Here we explored endocannabinoids and related N-acylethanolamines in saliva and verified their changes in relation to body weight status and in response to a meal or to body weight loss.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Fasting plasma and salivary endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines were measured through liquid mass spectrometry in 12 normal weight and 12 obese, insulin-resistant subjects. Salivary endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines were evaluated in the same cohort before and after the consumption of a meal. Changes in salivary endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines after body weight loss were investigated in a second group of 12 obese subjects following a 12-weeks lifestyle intervention program. The levels of mRNAs coding for enzymes regulating the metabolism of endocannabinoids, N-acylethanolamines and of cannabinoid type 1 (CB₁) receptor, alongside endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines content, were assessed in human salivary glands.The endocannabinoids 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG), N-arachidonoylethanolamide (anandamide, AEA), and the N-acylethanolamines (oleoylethanolamide, OEA and palmitoylethanolamide, PEA) were quantifiable in saliva and their levels were significantly higher in obese than in normal weight subjects. Fasting salivary AEA and OEA directly correlated with BMI, waist circumference and fasting insulin. Salivary endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines did not change in response to a meal. CB₁ receptors, ligands and enzymes were expressed in the salivary glands. Finally, a body weight loss of 5.3% obtained after a 12-weeks lifestyle program significantly decreased salivary AEA levels.

Conclusions/Significance

Endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines are quantifiable in saliva and their levels correlate with obesity but not with feeding status. Body weight loss significantly decreases salivary AEA, which might represent a useful biomarker in obesity.     

Modulation of sweet responses of taste receptor cells

Taste receptor cells play a major role in detection of chemical compounds in the oral cavity. Information derived from taste receptor cells, such as sweet, bitter, salty, sour and umami is important for evaluating the quality of food components. Among five basic taste qualities, sweet taste is very attractive for animals and influences food intake. Recent studies have demonstrated that sweet taste sensitivity in taste receptor cells would be affected by leptin and endocannabinoids. Leptin is an anorexigenic mediator that reduces food intake by acting on leptin receptor Ob-Rb in the hypothalamus. Endocannabinoids such as anandamide [N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA)] and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG) are known as orexigenic mediators that act via cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB₁) in the hypothalamus and limbic forebrain to induce appetite and stimulate food intake. At the peripheral gustatory organs, leptin selectively suppresses and endocannabinoids selectively enhance sweet taste sensitivity via Ob-Rb and CB₁ expressed in sweet sensitive taste cells. Thus leptin and endocannabinoids not only regulate food intake via central nervous systems but also modulate palatability of foods by altering peripheral sweet taste responses. Such reciprocal modulation of leptin and endocannabinoids on peripheral sweet sensitivity may play an important role in regulating energy homeostasis.     

Lipid rafts: A nexus for endocannabinoid signaling?

The endocannabinoids are endogenous agonists of the cannabinoid receptors and some members of the transient receptor potential, vanilloid type (TRPV), family of cation channels. Endocannabinoids along with their target receptors comprise a signaling system that is not well characterized. There have been many advances in our collective understanding of endocannabinoid signaling in the last decade and experimental evidence is mounting that pharmacological augmentation of endocannabinoid tone might have a significant therapeutic benefit in several disease states. However, the mechanisms responsible for the biosynthesis, cellular uptake, and intracellular processing of endocannabinoids are not well understood and have been the source of much debate. Recent studies have revealed a role for detergent insoluble membrane domains called lipid rafts in various aspects of signaling associated with the endocannabinoid anandamide. Intact detergent insoluble membrane domains appear to play a role in an anandamide-induced signaling cascade that is independent of G protein-coupled cannabinoid receptors or TRPV channels. Furthermore, detergent insoluble membrane domain-related endocytosis and recycling to lipid rafts appear to regulate the organization and localization of anandamide metabolites. We will discuss the implications that these findings have on the way we view endocannabinoid signaling, trafficking, and processing.