Estudo sobre a participação dos canabinóides nos transtôrnos de ansiedade e pânico

Abstract

Objective: This monograph reviews the endocannabinoid system and prospects with regard to strategies for pharmacological intervention in anxiety disorders and panic attacks. Method: We conducted a literature review of the endocannabinoid system and its pharmacology, considering the revision of original articles written in English and Portuguese, in addition to searching for classic books of Neurology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience. Discussion: The grat interest in the pharmacology of cannabinoids began with the discovery of 9-THC, the main active principle of Cannabis sativa and grew with the discovery of cannabinoids receptors, named CB, and endogenous ligands (endocannabinoids), together with the mechanisms synthesis and metabolism. The wide distribution of cannabinoids receptors in a system responsible for neural processing, interpretation and reaction to stimuli that indicate potential or actual situations of danger, suggesting involvement of the endocannabinoid system in anxiety disorders and panic attacks. One way to more actively researched pharmacological action is the inactivation of the enzyme FAAH, responsible for the metabolism of endocannabinoids after his re-entry into neurons. Conclusion: Taken together, the data presented here indicate that endogenous cannabinoid system participates in the control of emotional homeostasis and suggests that pharmacological manipulation of this system could be an option for the treatment of anxiety disorders and panic attacks. However we need a deeper understanding of the characterístics of temporal, spatial and functional basis of this system to clarify its role in emotional responses and promote advances in its therapeutic exploitation.