Synthetic Cannabinoid

AIMS: Recreational use of novel psychoactive substance (NPS) has become increasingly common. We aimed to assess the association of national legislation and local trading standards activity with hospital presentations. METHODS: We established observational cohorts of patients with recreational drug toxicity presenting to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and dying with detectable recreational drugs in Edinburgh. We assessed associations with two temporary class drug-orders (TCDO, Apr 2015: methylphenidates, Nov 2015: methiopropamine), the Psychoactive Substances Act (Jun 2016), and trading standards forfeiture orders (Oct 2015)...

Synthetic cannabinoids (SCs) are consumed as legal alternative to cannabis and often allow passing drug-screening tests. Their rapid transience on the drug scene, combined with their mostly unknown metabolic profiles, creates a scenario with constantly moving analytical targets, making their monitoring and identification challenging. The development of fast screening strategies for SCs, not directly focused on their chemical structure, as an alternative to the commonly applied target acquisition methods, would be highly appreciated in forensic and public health laboratories...

Pregabalin is currently approved for the treatment of epilepsy, generalized anxiety disorder, neuropathic pain, and fibromyalgia. A qualitative study was undertaken in Jordan, where concerns have been raised about its unprescribed availability in community pharmacies and thereby its abuse. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with all patients with a history of pregabalin use in two Jordanian addiction treatment centers. All were male patients aged 21-30 years ( n  = 11). The majority was poly-drug abusers and had a previous history of substance abuse (tramadol, Captagon, synthetic cannabinoids, and marijuana) ...

The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is composed of cannabinoid receptors, their endogenous ligands, and the enzymes involved in endocannabinoid turnover. Modulating the activity of the ECS may influence a variety of physiological and pathophysiological processes. A growing body of evidence indicates that activation of cannabinoid receptors by endogenous, plant-derived, or synthetic cannabinoids may exert beneficial effects on gastrointestinal inflammation and visceral pain. The present ex vivo study aimed to investigate immunohistochemically the distribution of cannabinoid receptors CB1, CB2, G protein-coupled receptor 55 (GPR55), and peroxisome proliferation activation receptor alpha (PPARα) in the canine gastrointestinal tract...

The incidence of cardiovascular disease is increasing in young adults. We are reporting a case of acute stroke in a young patient with severe ischaemic cardiomyopathy in the absence of traditional risk factors. After ruling out atherosclerotic disease, his presentation was attributed to synthetic cannabinoid use. We then discussed the typical barriers in early diagnosis and limitations of laboratory testing in this condition. Due to the increase in abuse of these synthetic drugs among young adults, there is a need for high clinical suspicion which can help with early recognition and improve morbidity and mortality associated with these chemicals...

OBJECTIVE: Cannabinoid receptor agonists such as delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9 -THC) enhance the antinociceptive potency of mu opioid receptor agonists such as morphine, indicating that opioid/cannabinoid mixtures might be effective for treating pain. However, such enhancement will be beneficial only if cannabinoids do not also enhance adverse effects of opioids, including those related to abuse. In rhesus monkeys, cannabinoids fail to enhance and often decrease self-administration of the mu opioid receptor agonist heroin, suggesting that opioid/cannabinoid mixtures do not have greater reinforcing effects (abuse potential) compared with opioids alone...

RATIONALE: 5F-AMB is one of the synthetic cannabinoids (SCs) designed to potentiate the ability to activate cannabinoid 1 (CB1) receptors and is abused worldwide. Although inhalation of 5F-AMB elicits serious adverse effects including impaired memory and consciousness, it is not known whether and how 5F-AMB affects the activity of pyramidal neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), a brain region associated with higher functions such as memory and cognition. OBJECTIVES: In the present study, we examined the effects of 5F-AMB on mPFC layer V (L5) pyramidal neurons using in vitro whole-cell patch-clamp recordings...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

OBJECTIVE: There is growing evidence regarding the numerous adverse effects of synthetic cannabinoids (SCBs) on the cardiovascular system; however, no studies have shown the cardiovascular effects of opioids using strain echocardiography. This study examines the cardiac structure and function using echocardiographic strain imaging in heroin and synthetic cannabinoid users. METHODS: This double-blind study included patients who were admitted or referred to a rehabilitation center for heroin (n=31) and synthetic cannabinoid users (n=30)...

Plants have always been used as medicines since ancient times to treat diseases. The knowledge around the active components of herbal preparations has remained nevertheless fragmentary: the biosynthetic pathways of many secondary metabolites of pharmacological importance have been clarified only in a few species, while the chemodiversity present in many medicinal plants has remained largely unexplored. Despite the advancements of synthetic biology for production of medicinal compounds in heterologous hosts, the native plant species are often the most reliable and economic source for their production...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: New synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs) are synthesized each year to evade U.S. governmental regulation and sold for recreational use. Our aim was to estimate the changes in the clinical effects and patient disposition associated with SCRA exposure from 2010 to 2015. DESIGN: A retrospective observational cohort study SETTING: National Poison Data System that collects data on reports of poisonings from 55 U.S. poison centers. PARTICIPANTS: 19,388 isolated SCRA cases between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2015 were identified...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: The anti-tumor properties of cannabinoids have been investigated in many in vitro and in vivo studies. Many of these anti-tumor effects are mediated via cannabinoid receptor types 1 and 2 (CB1 and CB2 ), comprising the endocannabinoid system (ECS). In this study, we investigated the ECS based on CB 1 and CB 2 receptor gene and protein expression in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) cell lines. In view of their further use for potential treatments, we thus investigated the roles of CB1 and CB2 receptors in the anti-proliferative action and signal transduction triggered by synthetic cannabinoid agonists [such as JWH-133 and WIN 55,212-2 (WIN-55)] in RCC cell lines...

Although exposure to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is perceived to be relatively harmless, mounting evidence has begun to show that it is associated with a variety of cognitive deficits, including poor decision making. THC-induced impairments in decision making are thought to be the result of cannabinoid CB1 receptor activation, and although clinical literature suggests that chronic activation via THC contributes to perturbations in decision making, acute CB1 receptor modulation has yielded mixed results...

Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) is an established pain modulator in the peripheral nervous system. Elevated levels of TNF-α in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons reportedly is critical for neuropathic pain processing. It has been shown that the production of nitric oxide, a key player in the development and maintenance of nociception, depends on the expression of nitric oxide synthases (NOSs) and their activities. Accumulating evidence also supports an important role of cannabinoids in modulating neuropathic pain...

Psychosocial stress contributes to the development of psychiatric disorders. Repeated social defeat (RSD) is a murine stressor that causes a release of inflammatory monocytes into circulation. Moreover, RSD-induced anxiety-like behavior is dependent on the recruitment of these monocytes to the brain. Activation of the endocannabinoid (ECB) system may modulate both neuroendocrine and inflammatory responses mediated by stress. Therefore, we hypothesized that a cannabinoid receptor agonist would attenuate RSD-induced inflammation, anxiety, and stress sensitization...

In this paper results of a pilot study on the profiling of the synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonist 5F-PB-22 (5F-QUPIC, pentylfluoro-1H-indole-3-carboxylic acid-8-quinolinyl ester) via isotope ratio mass spectrometry are presented. It is focused on δ13 C, δ15 N and δ2 H isotope ratios, which are determined using elemental analyser (EA) and high temperature elemental analyser (TC/EA) coupled to an isotope ratio mass spectrometer (IRMS). By means of a sample of pure material of 5F-PB-22 it is shown that the extraction of 5F-PB-22 from herbal material, a rapid clean-up procedure, or preparative column chromatography had no influences on the isotope ratios...

AIM: The aim of this study was to examine the typology of Australian illicit drug consumers to determine whether those who use new psychoactive substances (NPS) differ from those using other illicit substances. METHODS: Data were from the 2013 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, a representative population study; analyses were limited to participants reporting past year illicit drug use (including NPS; n = 3309). Latent class analysis identified groups based on past year substance use, and a weighted multivariable, multinomial regression model was used to examine characteristics associated with group membership...

INTRODUCTION: The government plan for the fight against drugs and addictive behaviors 2013-2017 includes several actions concerning French overseas territories, in particular to strengthen information on drug addiction. The Interministerial mission for combating drugs and addictive behaviors (MILD&CA) has commissioned the Bordeaux addictovigilance center to strengthen exchanges on addictovigilance with Réunion Island and Mayotte and to make an inventory of problematic drug use in these two French departments of Indian Ocean...

Introduction: Use of synthetic cannabinoids (SC) has recently emerged as a new drug epidemic. Our emergency departments (EDs) received a surge of SC users presenting with lethargy and bradycardia, contrasting prior reports of SC-induced tachycardia and agitation. Our goal was to describe these novel presentations and characterize the compounds. Methods: We present a case series of patients with SC intoxication who presented to our toxicology service covering two tertiary care EDs between 2/11/2015 and 6/23/2015...