REVIEW ARTICLE


Do Cannabinoids Confer Neuroprotection Against Epilepsy? An Overview



Anna Capasso*
Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, via Giovanni Paolo II, 84084, Fisciano, Italy


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Creative Commons License
© 2017 Anna Capasso.

open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

* Address correspondence to this author at the Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, via Giovanni Paolo II, 84084, Fisciano, Italy, Tel: +39 89 969 744; Fax: +39 89 969 602; E-mail annacap@unisa.it


Abstract

Objective:

Cannabinoid-based medications provide not only relief for specific symptoms, but also arrest or delay of disease progression in patients with pain, multiple sclerosis, and other conditions. Although they also seem to hold potential as anticonvulsant agents, evidence of their efficacy in epilepsy is supported by several evidences.

Method:

The data reviewed herein lend support to the notion that the endocannabinoid signalling system plays a key modulation role in the activities subserved by the hippocampus, which is directly or indirectly affected in epilepsy patients.

Conclusion:

The notion is supported by a variety of anatomical, electrophysiological, biochemical and pharmacological findings. These data suggest the need for developing novel treatments using compounds that selectively target individual elements of the endocannabinoid signalling system.

Keywords: Antiepileptic, Cannabinoids, Epilepsy, Neuroprotection, Cannabis sativa.