Main description:

The past decade has seen tremendous growth in the study of cannabinoid receptor signaling in brain. The impact and consequences of cannabinoid modulation of monoaminergic (dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin) circuits is becoming more clear. Scientists have shown significant interaction between these two systems in a variety of psychiatric and neurological disorders such as affective disorders, multiple sclerosis, and pain or pain disorders. The overarching goal of Endocannabinoid Regulation of Monoamines in Psychiatric and Neurological Disorders is to provide current information on advances in the field of endocannabinoid signaling and potential therapeutic applications with a particular emphasis on monoaminergic circuits.

Contents:

Endocannabinoids and monoamines: modulating the modulators.- Endocannabinoid-mediated synaptic plasticity.- Current cannabinoid receptor nomenclature and pharmacological principles.- Cue-elicited craving for cannabis activates the reward neurocircuitry associated with the neuropathology of addiction.- Cannabinoid modulation of dopaminergic circuits in neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders.- Pathophysiology of mood disorders and mechanisms of action of antidepressants and mood stabilizers.- Anatomical, biochemical and behavioral evidence for cannabinoid modulation of noradrenergic circuits: role of norepinephrine in cannabinoid-induced aversion.- Gender Disparity of Depression: The Role of Endocannabinoids and Noradrenergic Function.- Endocannabinoids, Monoamines and Stress.- Chronic effects of cannabinoid drugs on monoaminergic systems and the role of endocannabinoids and cannabinoid receptors in human brain disorders.- Endocannabinoid Signaling and the Regulation of the Serotonin System.- Modulation of serotonin firing activity through CB1 agonists and FAAH inhibitors.- Involvement of serotonergic system in cannabinoid analgesia.- Cannabinoids, monoamines, COMT and schizophrenia: pathobiological mechanisms in psychosis.