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MIT study suggests caution on new anti-obesity drug in kids
May 08, 2008Anti-obesity drugs that work by blocking brain molecules similar to those in marijuana could also interfere with neural development in young children, according to a new study from MIT's Picower Institute for Learning and Memory.
Marijuana is known to be an appetite stimulant, and a new class of anti-obesity drugs-such as rimonabant (trade name Acomplia) developed by Sanofi-Aventis and awaiting approval for use in the United States-work by blocking brain receptors that bind to marijuana and other cannabinoids.
Marijuana, derived from the plant Cannabis sativa, contains special active compounds that are referred to collectively as cannabinoids. But other cannabinoids (endocannabinoids) are generated naturally inside the body.
The MIT study, which was done in mice, found that blocking cannabinoid receptors could also suppress the adaptive rewiring of the brain necessary for neural development in children. The work is reported in the May 8 issue of Neuron.
"Our finding of a profound disruption of cortical plasticity in juvenile mice suggests caution is advised in the use of such compounds in children," wrote lead author Mark F. Bear, director of the Picower Institute and Picower Professor of Neuroscience.
The researchers investigated plasticity-the brain's ability to change in response to experience-by temporarily depriving newborn mice of vision in one eye soon after birth. This well-known experiment induces a long-lasting loss of synapses that causes blindness in the covered eye, while synapses shift to the uncovered eye. How and where this synaptic shift occurs in the primary visual cortex has remained controversial.
Understanding the mechanism behind this phenomenon is key because the same brain mechanisms are used for normal development and may go awry in conditions that cause developmental delays in humans, and may reappear in old age and contribute to synaptic loss during Alzheimer's disease, Bear said.
In mice, the MIT researchers found, even one day of deprivation from one eye starts the shift to dominance of the uncovered eye. But injecting the mice with a cannabinoid receptor blocker halted the shift in certain brain regions, indicating that cannabinoids play a key role in early synaptic development.
Blocking cannabinoids receptors could thwart this developmental process, the researchers said.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The MIT study, which was done in mice, found that blocking cannabinoid receptors could also suppress the adaptive rewiring of the brain necessary for neural development in children. The work is reported in the May 8 issue of Neuron.
"Our finding of a profound disruption of cortical plasticity in juvenile mice suggests caution is advised in the use of such compounds in children," wrote lead author Mark F. Bear, director of the Picower Institute and Picower Professor of Neuroscience.
The researchers investigated plasticity-the brain's ability to change in response to experience-by temporarily depriving newborn mice of vision in one eye soon after birth. This well-known experiment induces a long-lasting loss of synapses that causes blindness in the covered eye, while synapses shift to the uncovered eye. How and where this synaptic shift occurs in the primary visual cortex has remained controversial.
Understanding the mechanism behind this phenomenon is key because the same brain mechanisms are used for normal development and may go awry in conditions that cause developmental delays in humans, and may reappear in old age and contribute to synaptic loss during Alzheimer's disease, Bear said.
In mice, the MIT researchers found, even one day of deprivation from one eye starts the shift to dominance of the uncovered eye. But injecting the mice with a cannabinoid receptor blocker halted the shift in certain brain regions, indicating that cannabinoids play a key role in early synaptic development.
Blocking cannabinoids receptors could thwart this developmental process, the researchers said.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cannabinoids Current Events and Cannabinoids News RSSMarijuana ineffective as an Alzheimer's treatment: UBC-Vancouver Coastal Health research
The benefits of marijuana in tempering or reversing the effects of Alzheimer's disease have been challenged in a new study by researchers at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute.
Use of cannabinoids (marijuana) could help post-traumatic stress disorder patients
Use of cannabinoids (marijuana) could assist in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder patients. This is exposed in a new study carried out at the Learning and Memory Lab in the University of Haifa's Department of Psychology.
Active ingredients in marijuana found to spread and prolong pain
Imagine that you're working on your back porch, hammering in a nail. Suddenly you slip and hit your thumb instead - hard. The pain is incredibly intense, but it only lasts a moment. After a few seconds (and a few unprintable words) you're ready to start hammering again.
'Cannabis alters human DNA' -- new study
A new study published by University of Leicester researchers has found "convincing evidence" that cannabis smoke damages DNA in ways that could potentially increase the risk of cancer development in humans.
Medicinal marijuana effective for neuropathic pain in HIV
In a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to assess the impact of smoked medical cannabis, or marijuana, on the neuropathic pain associated with HIV, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine found that reported pain relief was greater with cannabis than with a placebo.
Milestone for cannabinoid MS study
The CUPID (Cannabinoid Use in Progressive Inflammatory brain Disease) study at the Peninsula Medical School in Plymouth has reached an important milestone with the news that the full cohort of 493 people with multiple sclerosis (MS) has been recruited to the study.
Schizophrenia linked to dysfunction in molecular brain pathway activated by marijuana
Alterations in a molecular brain pathway activated by marijuana may contribute to the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Opioids and cannabinoids influence mobility of spermatozoids
A PhD thesis from the University of the Basque Country has concluded that there are opioid and cannabinoid receptors in human sperm and that these influence the mobility of spermatozoid.
Medicines derived from cannabis: a review of adverse events
Researchers at the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), McGill University and the University of British Columbia (UBC) determined that medical use of cannabinoids do not cause an increase in serious adverse events, but are associated with an increase in some non-serious adverse events.
U of Minnesota researcher discovers the starting point of sun-induced skin cancer
According to a new study from the University of Minnesota, the earliest event in the development of sun-induced skin cancer may have been identified.
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