Old and new synthetic cannabinoids: lessons from animal models

Abstract

Synthetic cannabinoids have long been studied for their therapeutic potentials. However, during the last decade, new generations of synthetic cannabinoid agonists appeared on the drug market. These new psychoactive substances are currently sold as 'marijuana-like' products as they claim to mimic the effects of the psychoactive component of cannabis, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Yet, their effects are more intense and potent than THC, typically last longer and are often associated to serious psychiatric consequences. Animal models of drug addiction are frequently used in preclinical research to assess the abuse potential of new compounds, evaluate drug positive reinforcing effects and analyze drug-induced behaviors. Some of these protocols have been used recently to study the newly synthesized cannabinoid agonists and have started elucidating their pharmacology and actions in the brain. The aim of this review is to summarize the major findings reported by animal studies that tested synthetic cannabinoids of first, second, and third generation by using self-administration and reinstatement models, drug discrimination and conditioned place preference procedures. Altogether, behavioral studies clearly indicate that synthetic cannabinoids possess abuse liability, are likely to activate the brain reward circuit and induce positive subjective and reinforcing effects.

Pattern of Acute Synthetic Cannabinoids Toxicity in Patients Presented to the Poison Control Center of Ain Shams University Hospitals

“…In the early 2000s, SCs were synthesized by clandestine laboratories, sprayed on dried plant materials and then marketed as alternatives to traditional cannabis (Crime, 2011). As a result, not only a small community of experimental drug users tried these products, but also a wide proportion of habitual cannabis users as well as a lot of curious people abused them as legal alternatives to cannabis due to their hard detection in standard drugscreening assays of human body fluids (Auwärter et al, 2009;Zanda and Fattore, 2018).…”

The Modulating Role of Sex and Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Hormones in Cannabinoid Sensitivity

“…Since 2008, when the first synthetic cannabinoid (JWH-018) was detected in the market, at least 169 different synthetic cannabinoids have been discovered ( Fattore and Fratta, 2011 ; European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction [EMCDDA], 2017 ). The emergence of synthetic cannabinoids is becoming an increasing concern because of their undetermined addiction potential and adverse health effects ( Fattore, 2016 ; Weinstein et al, 2017 ; De Luca and Fattore, 2018 ; Zanda and Fattore, 2018 ).…”

How preclinical studies have influenced novel psychoactive substance legislation in the UK and Europe

“…We note previous studies on SCRAs from outside our search period (January 2008–December 2018), such as Randall et al . In this article, we focussed only on studies from the last 10 years, which include the so‐called third generation SCRAs …”