Endocannabinoids and the Heart

Endocannabinoids, blood pressure and the human heart.

The effects of exogenous and endogenous cannabinoids on the cardiovascular system have been the focus of extensive research. The direct and indirect effects of cannabinoids on heart and blood vessels depend upon experimental conditions, animal species, and, in humans, clinical background. Cannabinoids decrease blood pressure in hypertensive rodents primarily because of decrease cardiac contract...

Endocannabinoids protect the rat isolated heart against ischaemia.

1 The purpose of this study was to determine whether endocannabinoids can protect the heart against ischaemia and reperfusion. 2 Rat isolated hearts were exposed to low-flow ischaemia (0.5-0.6 ml min(-1)) and reperfusion. Functional recovery as well as CK and LDH overflow into the coronary effluent were monitored. Infarct size was determined at the end of the experiments. Phosphorylation levels...

Endocannabinoids and exercise.

Exercise induces changes in mental status, particularly analgesia, sedation, anxiolysis, and a sense of wellbeing. The mechanisms underlying these changes remain unknown. Recent findings show that exercise increases serum concentrations of endocannabinoids, suggesting a possible explanation for a number of these changes. This article provides an overview of this emerging field.

Obesity and Endocannabinoids

Endocannabinoids in the Gut

Cannabis has been used medicinally for centuries to treat a variety of disorders, including those associated with the gastrointestinal tract. The discovery of our bodies' own "cannabis-like molecules" and associated receptors and metabolic machinery - collectively called the endocannabinoid system - enabled investigations into the physiological relevance for the system, and provided the field w...