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Medicine and Health Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Medical Pharmacology

Virginia Commonwealth University

2007

Psychoactive

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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

A Comparision Of Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Dependence In C57bl/6j Mice And Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolase Knock Out Mice, Brittany Leigh Alice Carlson Jan 2007

A Comparision Of Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Dependence In C57bl/6j Mice And Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolase Knock Out Mice, Brittany Leigh Alice Carlson

Theses and Dissertations

The idea that humans and laboratory animals can become physically dependent on marijuana or its primary psychoactive constituent, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), is gaining acceptance. However, there are no currently approved pharmacotherapies to treat cannabinoid withdrawal. The objective of this thesis was to evaluate whether elevating endogenous anandamide levels using mice lacking fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), the enzyme responsible for anandamide metabolism, would ameliorate THC dependence. Mice were treated subchronically with a low or high THC dosing regimen and challenged with the CB1 receptor antagonist, rimonabant, to precipitate withdrawal. Following subchronic THC treatment, rimonabant precipitated a significant increase in paw flutters …