Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of endogenous cannabinoids in healthy and tumoral human brain and human cells in culture.
Endocannabinoids are lipid mediators thought to modulate central and peripheral neural functions. We report here gas chromatography-electron impact mass spectrometry analysis of human brain, showing that lipid extracts contain anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG), the most active endocannabinoids known to date. Human brain also contained the endocannabinoid-like compounds N-oleoylethanolamine, N-palmitoylethanolamine and N-stearoylethanolamine. Anandamide and 2-AG (0.16 +/- 0.05 and 0.10 +/- 0.05 nmol/mg protein, respectively) represented 7.7% and 4.8% of total endocannabinoid-like compounds, respectively. N-Palmitoyethanolamine was the most abundant (50%), followed by N-oleoyl (23.6%) and N-stearoyl (13.9%) ethanolamines. A similar composition in endocannabinoid-like compounds was found in human neuroblastoma CHP100 and lymphoma U937 cells, and also in rat brain. Remarkably, human meningioma specimens showed an approximately six-fold smaller content of all N-acylethanolamines, but not of 2-AG, and a similar decrease was observed in a human glioblastoma. These ex vivo results fully support the purported roles of endocannabinoids in the nervous system.
Maccarrone
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Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Sciences, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy.
Attinà
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Cartoni
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Bari
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Finazzi-Agrò
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D000577:Amides; D000818:Animals; D001095:Arachidonic Acids / Q000032:analysis; D001923:Brain Chemistry; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry*; D063385:Cannabinoid Receptor Modulators; D002186:Cannabinoids / Q000032:analysis*; D063388:Endocannabinoids; D004983:Ethanolamines / Q000032:analysis; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D005909:Glioblastoma / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000473:pathology; D005989:Glycerides / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000737:chemistry*; D008579:Meningioma / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000473:pathology; D009447:Neuroblastoma / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology; D009829:Oleic Acids; D010169:Palmitic Acids / Q000032:analysis; D053284:Polyunsaturated Alkamides; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012016:Reference Values; D013229:Stearic Acids / Q000032:analysis; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D020298:U937 Cells
D000577:Amides; D001095:Arachidonic Acids; D063385:Cannabinoid Receptor Modulators; D002186:Cannabinoids; D063388:Endocannabinoids; D004983:Ethanolamines; D005989:Glycerides; C408368:N-stearoylethanolamine; D009829:Oleic Acids; D010169:Palmitic Acids; D053284:Polyunsaturated Alkamides; D013229:Stearic Acids; C033595:N-oleoylethanolamine; C005958:palmidrol; C094503:glyceryl 2-arachidonate; C078814:anandamide