Book contents
- Marijuana and Madness
- Marijuana and Madness
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Part IPharmacology of Cannabis and the Endocannabinoid System
- Part IIThe Changing Face of Cannabis
- Part IIICannabis and the Brain
- Part IVCannabis, Anxiety, and Mood
- Part VCannabis and Psychosis
- Part VICannabinoids and Schizophrenia: Aetiopathology and Treatment Implications
- Chapter 17Does Cannabis Cause Psychosis?
- Chapter 18Post-mortem Studies of the Brain Cannabinoid System in Schizophrenia
- Chapter 19The Endocannabinoid System in Schizophrenia
- Chapter 20Cannabidiol as a Potential Antipsychotic
- Chapter 21Genetic Explanations for the Association between Cannabis and Schizophrenia
- Part VIICannabinoids and Schizophrenia: Aetiopathology and Treatment Implications
- Part VIIISpecial Topics
- Index
- References
Chapter 19 - The Endocannabinoid System in Schizophrenia
from Part VI - Cannabinoids and Schizophrenia: Aetiopathology and Treatment Implications
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 May 2023
Book contents
- Marijuana and Madness
- Marijuana and Madness
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Part IPharmacology of Cannabis and the Endocannabinoid System
- Part IIThe Changing Face of Cannabis
- Part IIICannabis and the Brain
- Part IVCannabis, Anxiety, and Mood
- Part VCannabis and Psychosis
- Part VICannabinoids and Schizophrenia: Aetiopathology and Treatment Implications
- Chapter 17Does Cannabis Cause Psychosis?
- Chapter 18Post-mortem Studies of the Brain Cannabinoid System in Schizophrenia
- Chapter 19The Endocannabinoid System in Schizophrenia
- Chapter 20Cannabidiol as a Potential Antipsychotic
- Chapter 21Genetic Explanations for the Association between Cannabis and Schizophrenia
- Part VIICannabinoids and Schizophrenia: Aetiopathology and Treatment Implications
- Part VIIISpecial Topics
- Index
- References
Summary
An excess or deficit of specific neurotransmitters or receptors has been the dominant theme for explaining the pathology of major mental illness for many decades. The best known example is that hyperdopaminergia is the cause of psychosis. Similar proposals have been made for glutamate and the endocannabinoids, based on the ability of drugs acting on these systems to elicit psychotic mental states. In addition, cannabis is also a risk factor for the development of schizophrenia. On this background, researchers have measured several endocannabinoid components in people with psychotic illness compared to controls. These components include synthesizing and degrading enzymes for anandamide and 2-arochodonylglycerol, the amount of endocannabinoid transmitter in the bloodstream or CSF and the availability of cannabinoid receptors. There is inconsistency in the field as a whole, but a number of intriguing findings have emerged, particularly reports of increased anandamide level in psychosis. In this chapter, the major studies are reviewed and collated.
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- Marijuana and Madness , pp. 189 - 199Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2023
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