scholarly journals Exo- and Endo-cannabinoids in Depressive and Suicidal Behaviors

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Srinagesh Mannekote Thippaiah ◽  
Sloka S. Iyengar ◽  
K. Yaragudri Vinod

Cannabis (marijuana) has been known to humans for thousands of years but its neurophysiological effects were sparsely understood until recently. Preclinical and clinical studies in the past two decades have indisputably supported the clinical proposition that the endocannabinoid system plays an important role in the etiopathogeneses of many neuropsychiatric disorders, including mood and addictive disorders. In this review, we discuss the existing knowledge of exo- and endo-cannabinoids, and role of the endocannabinoid system in depressive and suicidal behavior. A dysfunction in this system, located in brain regions such as prefrontal cortex and limbic structures is implicated in mood regulation, impulsivity and decision-making, may increase the risk of negative mood and cognition as well as suicidality. The literature discussed here also suggests that the endocannabinoid system may be a viable target for treatments of these neuropsychiatric conditions.

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 29-44
Author(s):  
Nur Syafiqa Balqis Md. Din ◽  
Mahadir Ahmad

Abstract: The frustration-aggression theorists generally posit aggression based on the influence of negative emotion or affect. Recently, investigation on the principles that influence the tendencies for aggressive responses play out in the mediating pathway, with the context that negative affect may or may not directly lead to aggression. Within the exploration at modifying the frustration-aggression concept, emotional regulation is an identified mechanism that buffers aggression resulting from negative emotional experiences. In turn, this has challenged the traditional frustration-aggression theory that indicates frustration (negative affect) does not always lead to aggression, in the case where the intense emotion from the relevant external situation has a chance to be modulated. However, little studies have documented the role of emotional regulation on negative affect and aggression. Therefore, this paper presents the nature of negative affect and emotional regulation strategies on aggression, while relating their pathway based on the contemporary General Aggression Model (GAM). We utilised the Google Scholar as the database in locating the relevant articles, with the terms focused on “Emotional Regulation” AND “Negative Affect” OR “Negative Mood” OR “Negative Emotion” AND “Aggression”. Reviews on the past studies that have investigated the role of emotional regulation on the relationship between aspects of negative affect and aggression are also discussed.  Emotional regulation has been consistently identified as an important mechanism that mediates the effect on negative emotional state on aggressive behaviours. Future studies are suggested to further investigate the inherent strategies of emotional regulation and taps into different forms of negative affect, besides anger, on aggression.


Author(s):  
Alexandra Ernst ◽  
Clare J. Rathbone

This chapter reviews the organizational role of the self in the distributions and accessibility of memories and imagined future events. It covers research on the self-reference effect, self-defining memories, and the reminiscence bump. In this context, the different methods used to explore the relationships between the self, autobiographical memory, and future thinking are reviewed. A comparative view of the findings obtained for the past and the future are also given. The contributions of studies conducted in both healthy controls and clinical populations are discussed. One section is devoted to investigations in people with neurological and neuropsychiatric conditions and their contribution to improving our understanding of the relationships between autobiographical memory and the self.


Author(s):  
Edward F. Pace-Schott ◽  
Samuel Gazecki

This chapter reviews the biological features of stress and their correlation to symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Over the past 15 years, advances in understanding the neurobiology of stress and anxiety have revealed underlying neural abnormalities that might help explain why posttraumatic symptoms—intrusive memories or nightmares, avoidance of situations or stimuli associated with the event, persistent negativity of mood and cognition, and hyperarousal—persist in patients with PTSD. This chapter focuses on research that has discovered how abnormal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity, abnormalities of the catecholamingergic/autonomic system, and atypical physiologic and neural circuit responses during fear extinction recall may be important biological factors in the etiology and maintenance of PTSD symptoms.


2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S631-S631
Author(s):  
A. Carvalho ◽  
J. Felgueiras ◽  
T. Abreu ◽  
C. Freitas ◽  
J. Silva

ObjectivesSchizophrenia is a debilitating psychiatric disorder which places a significant emotional and economic strain on the individual and society-at-large. Unfortunately, currently available therapeutic strategies do not provide adequate relief and some patients are treatment-resistant. Therefore there is urgent need for the development of mechanistically different and less side effect prone antipsychotic compounds. Recently, the endocannabinoid system has emerged as a potential therapeutic target for pharmacotherapy that is involved in a wide range of disorders, including schizophrenia. Modulation of this system by the main psychoactive component in cannabis, Δ9tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), induces acute psychotic effects and cognitive impairment. However, the non-psychotropic, plant-derived cannabinoid agent cannabidiol shows great promise for the treatment of psychosis, and is associated with fewer extrapyramidal side effects than conventional antipsychotic drugs.MethodsThe aim of this review is to analyse the involvement of the endocannabinoid system in schizophrenia and the potential role of cannabidiol in its treatment.Results and conclusionsThere is still considerable uncertainty about the mechanism of action of cannabidiol as well as the brain regions which are thought to mediate its putative antipsychotic effect. Further data is warrant before this novel therapy can be introduced into clinical practice.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (17) ◽  
pp. 6235
Author(s):  
Tapan Behl ◽  
Gagandeep Kaur ◽  
Simona Bungau ◽  
Rishabh Jhanji ◽  
Arun Kumar ◽  
...  

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. Published papers to date were searched via MEDLINE, PubMed, etc., using specific key words in the topic of our manuscript. 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.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
María S. García-Gutiérrez ◽  
Francisco Navarrete ◽  
Ani Gasparyan ◽  
Jorge Manzanares

Since the identification and cloning of the cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2R), several studies focused on the characterization of its physiological and pathological role. Initially, CB2R was considered as the peripheral cannabinoid receptor due to its detection in the rat spleen and leukocyte subpopulation in humans. Later, CB2R was identified in different brain regions significantly modifying the landscape and pointing out its role in a wide variety of central physiological functions and pathological conditions. Additional research also detected the expression of CB2R in neurons, microglia, and astroglia in different brain regions. Indeed, the findings collected to date support a significant function of CB2R in anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, and additional neuropsychiatric disorders. This review gathers the most relevant literature regarding new advances about the role of CB2R in a variety of neuropsychiatric conditions, with special emphasis on its potential as a new therapeutic target for the treatment of different psychiatric disorders.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 199-208
Author(s):  
Ambika Nand Jha ◽  
Dhaval M Patel

Cannabinoid receptors, located throughout the body, are part of the endocannabinoid system. Cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors are G protein-coupled receptors present from the early stages of gestation, which is involved in various physiological processes, including appetite, pain-sensation, mood, and memory. Due to the lipophilic nature of cannabinoids, it was initially thought that these compounds exert several biological effects by disrupting the cell membrane nonspecifically. Recent biochemical and behavioral findings have demonstrated that blockade of CB1 receptors engenders antidepressant-like neurochemical changes (increases in extracellular levels of monoamines in cortical but not subcortical brain regions) and behavioral effects consistent with antidepressant/antistress activity. We aim to define various roles of cannabinoid receptors in modulating signaling pathways and association with several pathophysiological conditions.


2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S26-S26
Author(s):  
A. Goudriaan ◽  
R. van Holst ◽  
T. van Timmeren

Background and aimsIn the past decade, neurobiological research on pathological gambling has flourished. Based on neurobiological similarities between pathological gambling and substance use disorders and similarities in genetics, diagnostic criteria, and effective treatments, pathological gambling was the first behavioral addiction to be included in the DSM-5 within the revised category Substance-related and addictive disorders.In this presentation novel findings from gambling research in our research group focusing on the role of impulsivity, anticipation towards monetary outcomes, and the interaction between stress and cue reactivity will be presented, with a focus on new functional MRI results. An overview will be given on the concepts of impulsivity and compulsivity in pathological gambling and relevant neurocognitive and neuroimaging findings. Implications of neurobiological research for novel intervention research, such as in neuromodulation studies and personalized medicine will be highlighted.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.


2013 ◽  
Vol 73 (1) ◽  
pp. 106-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
James J. Burston ◽  
Stephen G. Woodhams

The endocannabinoid (EC) system consists of two main receptors: cannabinoid type 1 receptor cannabinoid receptors are found in both the central nervous system (CNS) and periphery, whereas the cannabinoid type 2 receptor cannabinoid receptor is found principally in the immune system and to a lesser extent in the CNS. The EC family consists of two classes of well characterised ligands; the N-acyl ethanolamines, such as N-arachidonoyl ethanolamide or anandamide (AEA), and the monoacylglycerols, such as 2-arachidonoyl glycerol. The various synthetic and catabolic pathways for these enzymes have been (with the exception of AEA synthesis) elucidated. To date, much work has examined the role of EC in nociceptive processing and the potential of targeting the EC system to produce analgesia. Cannabinoid receptors and ligands are found at almost every level of the pain pathway from peripheral sites, such as peripheral nerves and immune cells, to central integration sites such as the spinal cord, and higher brain regions such as the periaqueductal grey and the rostral ventrolateral medulla associated with descending control of pain. EC have been shown to induce analgesia in preclinical models of acute nociception and chronic pain states. The purpose of this review is to critically evaluate the evidence for the role of EC in the pain pathway and the therapeutic potential of EC to produce analgesia. We also review the present clinical work conducted with EC, and examine whether targeting the EC system might offer a novel target for analgesics, and also potentially disease-modifying interventions for pathophysiological pain states.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 247054701986409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anahita Bassir Nia ◽  
Ricci Bender ◽  
Ilan Harpaz-Rotem

The role of the endocannabinoid system in stress-related psychiatric symptoms has been investigated in many animal and human studies. Although most of these studies consistently report long-lasting effects of prolonged stress and trauma on the endocannabinoid system, the nature and direction of these changes are controversial. We reviewed the available preclinical and clinical studies investigating the endocannabinoid system alterations long after chronic stress and trauma. We propose that the effects of prolonged stress or trauma on the endocannabinoid system are different based on the developmental age of subjects at the time of experiencing the trauma and its repetitiveness and accumulative effects. The current literature consistently demonstrates decreased levels of endocannabinoid ligands and receptors if the trauma occurs in childhood, whereas decreased levels of endocannabinoid ligands and increased levels of cannabinoid receptors are reported when trauma has happened in adulthood. It is important to note that these changes are region-specific in the brain and also there are important sex differences, which are beyond the scope of this review.


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