Inhibition of recombinant human T-type calcium channels by Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol.

ABSTRACT: Delta(9)-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are the most prevalent biologically active constituents of Cannabis sativa. THC is the prototypic cannabinoid CB1 receptor agonist and is psychoactive and analgesic. CBD is also analgesic, but it is not a CB1 receptor agonist. Low voltage-activated T-type calcium channels, encoded by the Ca(V)3 gene family, regulate the excitability of many cells, including neurons involved in nociceptive processing. We examined the effects of THC and CBD on human Ca(V)3 channels stably expressed in human embryonic kidney 293 cells and T-type channels in mouse sensory neurons using whole-cell, patch clamp recordings. At moderately hyperpolarized potentials, THC and CBD inhibited peak Ca(V)3.1 and Ca(V)3.2 currents with IC(50) values of approximately

SUBMITTER: Ross HR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3259625 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature