cannabisnews.com: Brain Releases Marijuana-Like Substance





Brain Releases Marijuana-Like Substance
Posted by FoM on October 13, 1999 at 12:08:44 PT
For Immediate Release
Source: Science Daily
Pain triggers the brain’s release of a naturally produced cannabinoid, a compound similar to the active ingredient in marijuana, according to a new study by Brown researchers that documented its release in the brain’s pain response system for the first time. 
The cannabinoid known as anandamide produced analgesia – the absence of a normal sense of pain – in response to pain in anesthetized rats. The findings are published in the Oct. 12 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Although the existence of non-opiate factors in the brain’s pain suppression system were first noted 20 years ago, little was known about these substances. Brown researchers were able to measure the anandamide using a new type of mass spectrometry, which is able to detect minute amounts of a substance. Knowledge about a pain-modulatory system based on cannabinoids is valuable for the future treatment of pain, particularly in instances where opiates are ineffective, according to J. Michael Walker, psychology professor and lead researcher. “There are some types of pain that do not respond well to current treatments,” said Walker. “The fact that you have different modulatory systems that are effective for different types of pain may offer hope.” Drugs that inhibit the reuptake of anandamide by cells, or block its degradation, may form the basis of a modern pharmacotherapy for pain, he said. Researchers measured the levels of anandamide in the region of the brain recognized for its role in pain modulation – the periaqueductal gray (PAG). The PAG is part of the brain stem that connects the cerebral hemispheres with the spinal cord. It is very similar in animals and humans. Electrical stimulation of the PAG in anesthetized animal models was accompanied by both pain suppression and a marked increase in the release of anandamide. Furthermore, injections of formalin, a chemical irritant that induces prolonged pain, profoundly elevated the anandamide levels in the same location of the PAG in anesthetized rats. Although animals did not feel the pain, researchers were able to observe pain modulation because the brain respond in the same way. Researchers used atmospheric pressure-chemical ionization mass spectrometry to measure the molecular weight of anandamide. This multistep method permitted the detection of the extremely small amounts of the anandamide. They found the substance in a different location of the PAG than the location proven to play a part in the release of natural opiates. “One of the functions of chemical transmission in the brain is to modify pain sensitivity, and the brain uses the anandamide for this purpose,” said Walker. “The pain itself triggers this reaction.” The correlation between cannabinoids and pain suppression is not a startling finding in itself; cannabinoids have been used to treat pain for centuries. In ancient China, hemp extract was used as a surgical anesthetic, and archaeological finds in Israel have revealed its use against the pain of childbirth. Cannabis is still used to treat pain, despite its illegal status in most parts of the world. A report early this year by the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine found that significant amounts of research – including research by Walker and colleagues – point to the potential to use marijuana derivatives in treating chronic pain. However, more research needs to be done to determine whether there are other naturally produced cannabinoids released in the brain in addition to anandamide, said Walker. Other researchers involved in the study were Susan M. Huang, Brown graduate student; Nicole M. Strangman, Brown graduate student; M. Clara Sañudo-Peña, assistant research professor of psychology; and the late Brown University professor and member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kang Tsou. The work was supported with funding from the U.S. Public Health Service and National Institutes of Health. In addition, Brown University and the National Institute on Drug Abuse financed the purchase of the mass spectrometer used in the experiments. Editor's Note: The original news release can be found at: http://www.brown.edu/Administration/News_Bureau/1999-00/99-031.html  Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by Brown University for journalists and other members of the public. If you wish to quote from any part of this story, please credit Brown University as the original source. You may also wish to include the following link in any citation: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/1999/10/991013074947.htm Copyright © 1995-99 ScienceDaily Magazine Email: editor sciencedaily.com Related Articles:Study Shows How Marijuana Affects Pain - 10/12/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3251.shtmlMarijuana-Like Substance in Brain Relieves Pain - 10/11/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3243.shtml 
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #1 posted by Louann Hemphill on December 01, 1999 at 10:06:11 PT:
maryjane should be decriminalized
The federal government of the U.S. has, of course, faught the entire country and world on what it means to be free. As far as I can see we no longer have freedom to live in this place. Proposition 215 that was passed in Cali. has been basically ignored by law enforcement officials who feel that they know what is good for citizens and these officials are being backed by the federal government making the decisions by police officers to continue making arrests justifiable. It is high time the federal government remembered that the people of this country are the true rulers of this country. I am a twenty-one year old student at Loyola University, New Orleans, La. and I have been a pot smoker for some time now. I suffer from migrane headaches - if I need an excuse to smoke, but I started smoking because it was the best way I could find to relax. I think that Proposition 215 is a great start to decriminalizing pot but it also has its downfalls. Now, those smokers who have no terminal illness that causes tremendous pain or nausia will have no reason to smoke and could, in the long run, be criticized more by government officials who think they know it all because they wear a badge. What about those people who choose to smoke marijuana because they simply like the effects? Are they to be left out in the cold with the coce-heads and heroin addicts? I would like to form a campaign for the legalization of marijuana and the decriminalization of it here in Louisiana. As far as I can tell, there are few activists for this around and I think this needs to change. With things like the internet, we can all work together to make a national awareness of what the people want and we can achieve our goals through hard work and cooperation. If there are any groups in this area don't hesitate to email me and let me know because the time has come to put the law of the people back into motion. I want to advocate the legalization of freedom in this country beginning with marijuana use. I am willing to go the extra mile. I want to make speeches, I want to have campains, marches, protests - whatever it takes to make the government hear us and change the laws in our favor I am willing to do. And I know I'm not the only one. Presently, I am writing a paper on the Renee Boje story which has really angered me. The justices have been extremely unfair to McCormick in that they have dismissed the use of an extreme amount of evidence dealing with his medicinal uses of marijuana. Apparently, there will not be a fair trial and this makes me sad. Please contact me if possible.
[ Post Comment ]

Post Comment


Name: Optional Password: 
E-Mail: 
Subject: 
Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message]
Link URL: 
Link Title: