cannabinoids

Proteins that synthesize, bind, and degrade endocannabinoids are present in the body’s sperm factories, suggesting that the use of cannabis may directly affect them.

A brazier and charred stones, thought to be part of burial ceremonies, preserve signs that people used the drug thousands of years ago.

Genes inserted into the yeast genome produce the compounds CBD and THC in the microbes.

Rodent and human studies have revealed a multitude of effects starting during gestation and lasting into adulthood.

Originally intended for basic neuroscience research, the drugs were ultimately hijacked for illicit recreational use.

Young rats injected with a synthetic cannabinoid have more of the brain’s motivating dopaminergic signaling and fewer numbers of inhibitory neurons than controls.

Offspring of rats exposed to vaporized cannabis had difficulty switching strategies to get a sugar reward, according to a study presented at the Society for Neuroscience conference.

Epidiolex, a cannabis-derived medicine for epilepsy, will prompt federal regulatory changes that could crack open access to study the plant.

NIDA pharmacologist Michael Baumann explains how “unscrupulous vendors” hijacked compounds used in neuroscience and turned them into dangerous drugs.

Marijuana ointments as cancer treatments remain a distant prospect. 

And the same endocannabinoid system that translates marijuana's buzz-inducing compounds into a high plays crucial roles in health and disease outside the brain.

In young mice, THC had the opposite effect.

Academics partner with a biotech firm to investigate cannabinoids and develop potential therapeutics.

US scientists continue to have a hard time getting funding to study the health impacts of the drug. But cannabis research in Canada—where medical marijuana is legal nationwide—is different story.

A new report summarizes what we know about the impacts of marijuana use, as more states have legalized the drug for both medical and recreational purposes.

The US Drug Enforcement Agency continues to classify marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, however, perpetuating challenges for researchers.

A marijuana-derived compound shows continued success in treating children with a rare form of the seizure disorder. 

Oxytocin and social contact together modulate endocannabinoid activity in the mouse brain, which could help explain the prosocial effects of marijuana use.