Preparations of Cannabis Sativa (Cannabinoid drugs: e.g. marihuana, hashish, bhang) have been used for analgesia, sedation, attenuation of the nausea and vomiting due to cancer chemotherapy, appetite stimulation, decreasing bronchial constriction, decreasing intraocular pressure in glaucoma, treatment of certain motor or convulsant disorders and for their mood altering properties. The CB1 receptor is a helix-transmembrane spanning, G-protein coupled receptor found in abundance in the brain. The goal of this research is to characterize signal transduction mechanisms of the CB1 cannabinoid receptor.
The specific aims are to test the following hypothesis: The HelixII-asp-Helix VII-asn interaction maintains a conformational constraint on the CB1 receptor that can be modified by Na+, leading to effects on signal transduction that differ with agonist class and G-protein type. The Helix VII-pro distal to the asn can transmit conformational changes important for signal transduction.
