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Medical cannabis vs. synthetic cannabinoids: What does the future hold?
Author(s) -
Bolognini D,
Ross RA
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
clinical pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.941
H-Index - 188
eISSN - 1532-6535
pISSN - 0009-9236
DOI - 10.1002/cpt.107
Subject(s) - synthetic cannabinoids , cannabis , cannabinoid , cannabinoid receptor , tetrahydrocannabinol , pharmacology , dronabinol , medicine , chemistry , receptor , psychiatry , agonist
The medical use of cannabis has an intricate therapeutic history that finds its roots in ancient China (∼2700 BC). The main psychoactive component of cannabis, Δ 9 ‐tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ 9 ‐THC), was discovered in 1964. This was a significant breakthrough, as it allowed the generation of synthetic analogs of Δ 9 ‐THC, the discovery of cannabinoid receptors, and the generation of synthetic small molecules. Despite this, today there is still a paucity of drugs that target the cannabinoid system.