Hippocampal expression of the cannabinoid receptor type 1 in canine epilepsy

Abstract

Canine drug-resistant epilepsy is a prevailing issue in veterinary neurology. Alternative or additional treatment with cannabinoids is showing promising results in seizure management. A crucial component of the endocannabinoid system, cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1R), is heavily involved in the control of neurotransmitter release. Knowledge of its distribution in the epileptic brain would serve a better understanding of disease pathology and application of cannabinoids in dogs with epilepsy. CB1R distribution was assessed in sub-regions of hippocampus of dogs with idiopathic epilepsy, structural epilepsy and without cerebral pathology. In dogs with idiopathic epilepsy, significantly decreased CB1R expression compared to control animals was observed in CA1. In dogs with structural epilepsy, a significant increase in CB1R signal intensity in comparison to controls was observed. CB1R expression was higher in the structural group as compared to the idiopathic. Double immunofluorescence showed co-localization between CB1R and an astrocytic marker in about 50% of cells, regardless of the diagnosis. In summary, CB1R expression in canine hippocampus undergoes modification by the epileptic process and the direction of this change depends on the etiology of the disease. The distinct disease-associated CB1R expression needs to be considered in new treatment development for dogs with epilepsy.

Endocannabinoid System Receptors at the Hip and Stifle Joints of Middle-Aged Dogs: A Novel Target for the Therapeutic Use of Cannabis sativa Extract in Canine Arthropathies

“…Cannabinoid receptors are widely expressed through different cellular types of the organism; their distribution will be different depending on the organ and cell-type of interest [ 9 ]. Within the canine species, the expression of the CB1R, CB2R, and GPR55 was shown at the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS) [ 39 , 49 , 50 ], at the skin [ 37 ], and at the gastrointestinal tract [ 4 ]. Furthermore, the authors’ group recently showed the expression of cannabinoid and cannabinoid-related receptors at the synoviocytes (FLSs and MLSs) of horses [ 1 ], in which the mRNA and the immunoreactivity of CB1R was found in the synoviocytes of some but not all the subjects.…”

ChatGPT and scientific papers in veterinary neurology; is the genie out of the bottle?

“…We selected three research papers authored by the team of the Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery at the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Hannover, Germany focusing on different subjects in the field of veterinary neurology, including SARS-CoV-2 scent detection in dogs ( 20 ), potential biomarkers for steroid-responsive meningitis-arteritis ( 21 ), and staining of cannabinoid receptor type one ( 22 ). These articles were published between November 2022 and April 2023 in three different journals: BMJ ( 23 ), PLOS ONE ( 24 ), and Scientific Reports ( 25 ).…”