Cannabichromene Induces Neuronal Differentiation in NSC-34 Cells: Insights from Transcriptomic Analysis.

Phytocannabinoids, with their variety of beneficial effects, represent a valid group of substances that could be employed as neurogenesis-enhancers or neuronal differentiation inducers. We focused our attention on the neuronal-related potential of cannabichromene (CBC) when administered to undifferentiated NSC-34 for 24 h. Transcriptomic analysis showed an upregulation of several neuronal markers, such as and , as well as indicators of neuronal differentiation process progression, such as . An in-depth investigation of the processes involved in neuronal differentiation indicates positive cytoskeleton remodeling by upregulation of and , and active differentiation-targeted transcriptional program, suggested by and After 48 h of treatment, the markers previously examined in the transcriptomic analysis are still overexpressed, like and , indicating that the differentiation process is still in progress. The lack of GFAP protein suggests that no astroglial differentiation is taking place, and it is reasonable to indicate the neuronal one as the ongoing one. These results indicate CBC as a potential neuronal differentiation inducer for NSC-34 cells.