Addiction Biology
February 3, 2021
Bree A. Humburg, Chloe J. Jordan, Hai‐Ying Zhang et al.
30 citations
Most cannabinoids reduce rather than enhance reward-seeking behavior in mice, according to an optogenetic self-stimulation procedure. Cocaine dose-dependently increased responding, shifting stimulation–response curves upward. In contrast, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), WIN55,212-2, and ACEA dose-dependently decreased responding and shifted curves downward; cannabidiol had no effect. Among newer synthetic cannabinoids, XLR-11 produced a cocaine-like increase, AM-2201 produced a THC-like reduction, and 5F-AMB had no effect. CB1 receptors were expressed mainly in VTA GABA and glutamate neurons, while CB2 receptors were expressed mainly in VTA dopamine neurons. These findings suggest most cannabinoids are reward attenuating or aversive in mice.
Journal of integrative medicine
July 1, 2023
Biao Gao, Yi-Cui Qu, Meng-Yu Cai et al.
9 citations
Research on plant-based treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder has surged since 2015, with nearly half of all relevant articles coming from North America. A cluster co-occurrence network analysis of 301 articles from the Web of Science database (2007–2022) shows the field is dominated by neuroscience and neurology, and most studies focus on psychedelic interventions. Three timelines reveal an "ebb and flow" between research on substance use/marijuana abuse and psychedelic medicine/medicinal cannabis. Other phytochemicals account for a small proportion of studies, examining neurosteroid turnover, serotonin levels, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression. The research is unevenly distributed across countries, disciplines, and journals.
Neuropharmacology
May 15, 2025
Mu Xu, Jialiang Wang, Jia Shi et al.
4 citations
Esketamine treatment alleviated sepsis symptoms, cognitive impairment, and decreased mortality in a mouse model of sepsis-associated encephalopathy. It reduced neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, and neuronal loss, and normalized calcium transients while improving dendritic structure and synaptic plasticity in the hippocampal CA1 region. These effects depended on the NF-α1/CREB signaling pathway, as suppressing NF-α1 abolished the protective effects and reversed improvements in calcium transients, dendrites, and post-synaptic plasticity. The findings suggest esketamine protects against hippocampal injury in sepsis through this pathway.