The effects of the cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN 55,212-2 on endogenous extracellular glutamate levels in the prefrontal cortex of the awake rat and in primary cultures of rat cerebral cortex neurons were investigated. In the prefrontal cortex WIN 55,212-2 (0.1 and 1 mg/kg i.p.) increased dialysate glutamate levels from of the awake rat, while the lower (0.01 mg/kg) and the higher (2 mg/kg) doses were ineffective. Furthermore, the WIN 55,212-2 (0.1 mg/kg)- induced increase of dialysate glutamate levels was counteracted by pretreatment with the selective CB(1) receptor antagonist SR141716A (0.1 mg/kg i.p.) and by the local perfusion with a low-calcium Ringer solution (Ca(2+) 0.2 mM). In primary cultures of rat cerebral cortex neurons, WIN 55,212-2 (0.01--100 nM) increased extracellular glutamate levels, displaying a bell-shaped concentration-response curve. The facilitatory effect of WIN 55,212-2 (1 nM) was fully counteracted by SR141716A (10 nM), by the replacement of the normal Krebs Ringer-bicarbonate buffer with a low Ca(2+) medium (0.2 mM) and by the IP(3) receptor antagonist xestospongin C (1 microM). These in vivo and in vitro findings suggest an increase in cortical glutamatergic transmission by CB(1) receptors, an effect that may underlie some of the psychoactive and behavioural actions of acute exposure to marijuana.

The effects of the cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN 55,212-2 (0.1-5 mg/kg i.p.) on endogenous extracellular gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels in the cerebral cortex of the awake rat was investigated by using microdialysis. WIN 55,212-2 (1 and 5 mg/kg i.p.) was associated with a concentration-dependent decrease in dialysate GABA levels (-16% +/- 4% and -26% +/- 4% of basal values, respectively). The WIN 55,212-2 (5 mg/kg i.p.) induced-inhibition was counteracted by a dose (0.1 mg/kg i.p.) of the CB(1) receptor antagonist SR141716A, which by itself was without effect on cortical GABA levels. These findings suggest that cannabinoids decrease cortical GABA levels in vivo, an action that might underlie some of the cognitive and behavioral effects of acute exposure to marijuana.

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The effects of the principal psychoactive component of marijuana, Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta(9)-THC), on endogenous extracellular glutamate levels in primary cultures of rat cerebral cortex neurons were investigated. Locally applied Delta(9)-THC (0.03, 3, 300, and 1,000 nM) concentration-dependently increased basal extracellular glutamate levels (+18% +/- 11%, +54% +/- 10%, +90% +/- 14%, +149% +/- 33% vs. basal). The facilitatory effects of Delta(9)-THC (3 and 300 nM) on cortical glutamate were fully counteracted in the presence of the selective CB(1) receptor antagonist SR141716A (10 nM) and by replacement of the normal Krebs-Ringer bicarbonate buffer with a low-Ca(2+) (0.2 mM) medium. Delta(9)-THC application also induced an enhancement in K(+)-evoked glutamate levels. These findings suggest that an increase in cortical glutamatergic transmission mediated by local CB(1) receptor activation may underlie some of the psychoactive and behavioral effects of acute marijuana consumption.

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