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Functional assessment of neuronal cannabinoid receptors in the muscular layers of human ileum and colon
- Source :
- Digestive and liver disease : official journal of the Italian Society of Gastroenterology and the Italian Association for the Study of the Liver. 34(4)
- Publication Year :
- 2002
-
Abstract
- Background & aims. The notion that specific receptors account for the ability of natural and synthetic cannabinoids to alter physiological functions, prompted this study aimed at assessing their functional presence in the human gut. Methods. The effects have been studied of cannabinoids and selective antagonists of their receptors on chemically or electrically evoked contractions in preparations of human intestinal smooth muscle in vitro. Results. Atropine prevented the contractions of longitudinal and circular muscle strips of ileum and colon induced by carbachol or electrical field stimulation; tetrodotoxin abolished only the latter, which suggests they do involve activation of cholinergic neurons. The synthetic cannabinoid (+)WIN 55,212-2 had no effect on carbachol contractions, but in a concentration-dependent fashion prevented those elicited by electrical field stimulation - which were insensitive to the putative endogenous cannabinoid anandamide - more potently in longitudinal than in circular strips. The selective CB, receptor antagonist SR141716, which had no effect in the absence of (+)WIN 55,212-2, competitively antagonised its inhibition of electrical field stimulation contractions, unlike the selective CB2 antagonist SR 14452B. Conclusions. Cannabinoid CB, receptors are functionally present in the human ileum and colon; their pharmacological activation apparently results in inhibition of excitatory cholinergic pathways subserving smooth muscle contraction.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Carbachol
Cannabinoid receptor
medicine.drug_class
Colon
medicine.medical_treatment
Morpholines
Receptors, Drug
In Vitro Techniques
Naphthalenes
chemistry.chemical_compound
Ileum
Internal medicine
medicine
Humans
Receptor
Receptors, Cannabinoid
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Hepatology
business.industry
Cannabinoids
Gastroenterology
Muscle, Smooth
Smooth muscle contraction
Anandamide
Middle Aged
Receptor antagonist
Immunohistochemistry
Benzoxazines
Endocrinology
chemistry
Cholinergic
Female
Cannabinoid
business
Gastrointestinal Motility
medicine.drug
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 15908658
- Volume :
- 34
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Digestive and liver disease : official journal of the Italian Society of Gastroenterology and the Italian Association for the Study of the Liver
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....81a1a595450777e986afd6b3fb8dc1e0