Endocannabinoid Research Group, Institute of Biomolecular Chemistry, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Pozzuoli, Italy.
EMBO J. 2014 Apr 1;33(7):665-7. doi: 10.1002/embj.201488086. Epub 2014 Mar 14.
Microtubule turnover in the growing axons is required for directional axonal growth and synapse formation in the developing brain. In this issue of The EMBO Journal, Tortoriello et al (2014) show that the microtubule-binding protein SCG10/stathmin-2 is a specific molecular target for a CB1 receptor-mediated effect of Δ(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient of smoked marijuana, in the fetal brain. Considering the role of CB1 in modulating the specification and long-distance migration of neurons in the perinatal brain, this study reveals an interesting mechanism potentially accounting for connectivity deficits during cortical development following exposure to CB1 agonists or THC during pregnancy.
微管在生长轴突中的周转率对于大脑发育过程中定向轴突生长和突触形成是必需的。在本期《欧洲分子生物学组织杂志》中,Tortoriello 等人(2014)表明,微管结合蛋白 SCG10/微管蛋白抑制蛋白-2 是大麻素 CB1 受体介导的 Δ(9)-四氢大麻酚(THC,吸食大麻中的精神活性成分)作用的特定分子靶点,在胎脑中。鉴于 CB1 在调节围产期大脑中神经元的特化和长距离迁移中的作用,这项研究揭示了一种有趣的机制,可能解释了在怀孕期间暴露于 CB1 激动剂或 THC 后皮质发育过程中的连接缺陷。