breeding the pot out of us

this month’s scientific american has a timley article about marijuana. i was horribly ignorant of most scientific research on the drug. the article's best quote:

Everyone grows a form of the drug, regardless of their political leanings or recreational proclivities. That is because the brain makes its own marijuana, natural compounds called endocannabinoids.

john p. walters himself produces thc-like substances, which likely is a source of great internal conflict and self-loathing. perhaps this invalidates the theory of cognitive dissonance. if scientists created an endocannabinoid pill, would it be illegal?

it's no surprise, however, that endocannabinoids exist. the mere fact that pot created psychotropic effects, illustrating that there were pot-receptors were in the brain, indicated that there was an endogenous chemical that acted on those receptors. however, marijuana studies did actually caused a major shift in how we think about neuron communication, which is summarized in the article. basically, before this landmark research, communication between neurons was believed to be one-way: from pre- to postsynaptic cell, carrying the signal on down the line. however, endocannabinoids proved that communication -inhibition, in this case- can actually occur in the opposite direction, having the effect of a neuron basically saying "do not disturb" to a cell trying to send it a signal.

one of the most fascinating parts of this history was, however, a study that bred mice lacking the endocannabinoid receptor. this means that the mice, among other things, are physically incapable of getting high. if getting high is so dangerous, why not throw money into learning how to breed all humans without the receptor? speaking of czar walters, perhaps i should fax the article to him as an fyi.

also, speaking of good ol’ j.w., check out his fascinating marijuana myths if you want some more “facts” about this dangerous schedule one drug.

Labels: drugs, neuroscience