Book contents
- Marijuana and Madness
- Marijuana and Madness
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- 1 How cannabis works in the brain
- 2 Other cannabinoids
- 3 The function of the endocannabinoid system
- 4 Is cannabis becoming more potent?
- 5 What are the policy implications of the evidence on cannabis and psychosis?
- 6 Cannabis, endocannabinoids and neurodevelopment
- 7 The impact of pubertal exposure to cannabis on the brain: a focus on animal studies
- 8 Cannabis and cognition: short- and long-term effects
- 9 Does cannabis cause lasting brain damage?
- 10 The association between cannabis use and depression: a review of the evidence
- 11 Cannabis, cannabinoids and bipolar disorder
- 12 Which cannabis users develop psychosis?
- 13 Cannabinoids and the cerebellum: a potential role in the development of psychosis
- 14 The neural basis for the acute effects of cannabis on learning and psychosis
- 15 Does cannabis use cause schizophrenia? The epidemiological evidence
- 16 Postmortem studies of the brain cannabinoid system in schizophrenia
- 17 The endocannabinoid system in schizophrenia
- 18 The acute effects of cannabinoids in patients with psychotic illness
- 19 Cannabis abuse and the course of schizophrenia
- 20 Understanding cannabis use in schizophrenia
- 21 Addressing cannabis use in people with psychosis
- Index
1 - How cannabis works in the brain
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 November 2011
Book contents
- Marijuana and Madness
- Marijuana and Madness
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- 1 How cannabis works in the brain
- 2 Other cannabinoids
- 3 The function of the endocannabinoid system
- 4 Is cannabis becoming more potent?
- 5 What are the policy implications of the evidence on cannabis and psychosis?
- 6 Cannabis, endocannabinoids and neurodevelopment
- 7 The impact of pubertal exposure to cannabis on the brain: a focus on animal studies
- 8 Cannabis and cognition: short- and long-term effects
- 9 Does cannabis cause lasting brain damage?
- 10 The association between cannabis use and depression: a review of the evidence
- 11 Cannabis, cannabinoids and bipolar disorder
- 12 Which cannabis users develop psychosis?
- 13 Cannabinoids and the cerebellum: a potential role in the development of psychosis
- 14 The neural basis for the acute effects of cannabis on learning and psychosis
- 15 Does cannabis use cause schizophrenia? The epidemiological evidence
- 16 Postmortem studies of the brain cannabinoid system in schizophrenia
- 17 The endocannabinoid system in schizophrenia
- 18 The acute effects of cannabinoids in patients with psychotic illness
- 19 Cannabis abuse and the course of schizophrenia
- 20 Understanding cannabis use in schizophrenia
- 21 Addressing cannabis use in people with psychosis
- Index
Summary
This chapter reviews what is known about the interactions of cannabis with the cannabinoid system in the brain, and how the drug affects psychomotor, cognitive, perceptual and appetitive functions. In both animals and humans the cerebral cortex, particularly the frontal regions, contains high densities of CB1 receptors. The presynaptic localization of CB1 receptors suggests a role for cannabinoids in modulating the release of neurotransmitters from axon terminals. CB1 receptors are expressed at particularly high densities in the basal ganglia and cerebellum so it is not surprising that cannabinoids have complex effects on psychomotor function. Controlled clinical trials showed that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) had significant beneficial effects in counteracting the loss of appetite and reduction in body weight in patients suffering from AIDS-related wasting syndrome. The interaction of the cannabinoid and opioid systems in CNS remains to be demonstrated convincingly in humans.
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- Marijuana and Madness , pp. 1 - 16Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011
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