title: Cannabinoid 1 receptors are critical for the innate immune response to TLR4 stimulation.
abstract: Sickness behaviors are host defense adaptations that arise from integrated autonomic outputs in response to activation of the innate immune system. These behaviors include fever, anorexia, and hyperalgesia intended to promote survival of the host when encountering pathogens. Cannabinoid (CB) receptor activation can induce hypothermia and attenuate LPS-evoked fever. The aim of the present study was to examine the role of CB1 receptors in the LPS-evoked febrile response. CB1 receptor-deficient (CB1(-/-)) mice did not display LPS-evoked fever; likewise, pharmacological blockade of CB1 receptors in wild-type mice blocked LPS-evoked fever. This unresponsiveness is not limited to thermogenesis, as the animals were not hyperalgesic after LPS administration. A Toll-like receptor (TLR)3 agonist and viral mimetic polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid evoked a robust fever in CB1(-/-) mice, suggesting TLR3-mediated responses are functional. LPS-evoked c-Fos activation in areas of the brain associated with the febrile response was evident in wild-type mice but not in CB1(-/-) mice. Liver and spleen TLR4 mRNA were significantly lower in CB1(-/-) mice compared with wild-type mice, and peritoneal macrophages from CB1(-/-) mice did not release proinflammatory cytokines in response to LPS. These data indicate that CB1 receptors play a critical role in LPS-induced febrile responses through inhibiting TLR4-mediated cytokine production.
authors.affiliation: Hotchkiss Brain Institute and Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Marnie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Duncan
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Galic
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Adam P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.forename: Donna-Marie
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: McCafferty
authors.forename: Derek M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: McKay
authors.forename: Keith A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Sharkey
authors.forename: Quentin J
authors.initials: QJ
authors.lastname: Pittman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001831:Body Temperature / Q000502:physiology; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D005334:Fever / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology; D006930:Hyperalgesia / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000235:genetics; D007113:Immunity, Innate / Q000502:physiology*; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010880:Piperidines / Q000494:pharmacology; D011070:Poly I-C / Q000494:pharmacology; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / Q000096:biosynthesis; D011720:Pyrazoles / Q000494:pharmacology; D012313:RNA / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D043884:Receptor, Cannabinoid, CB1 / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D051196:Toll-Like Receptor 3 / Q000187:drug effects; D051197:Toll-Like Receptor 4 / Q000819:agonists*
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D010880:Piperidines; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; D011720:Pyrazoles; D043884:Receptor, Cannabinoid, CB1; C493487:Tlr4 protein, mouse; D051196:Toll-Like Receptor 3; D051197:Toll-Like Receptor 4; C103505:AM 251; D012313:RNA; D011070:Poly I-C
keywords: Toll-like receptor; cytokine; endocannabinoid; fever