Expression Analysis of CB2-GFP BAC Transgenic Mice.

The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is a retrograde messenger system, consisting of lipid signaling molecules that bind to at least two G-protein-coupled receptors, Cannabinoid receptor 1 and 2 (CB1 and 2). As CB2 is primarily expressed on immune cells such as B cells, T cells, macrophages, dendritic cells, and microglia, it is of great interest how CB2 contributes to immune cell development and function in health and disease. Here, understanding the mechanisms of CB2 involvement in immune-cell function as well as the trafficking and regulation of CB2 expressing cells are crucial issues. Up to now, CB2 antibodies produce unclear results, especially those targeting the murine protein. Therefore, we have generated BAC transgenic GFP reporter mice (CB2-GFPTg) to trace CB2 expression in vitro and in situ. Those mice express GFP under the CB2 promoter and display GFP expression paralleling CB2 expression on the transcript level in spleen, thymus and brain tissue. Furthermore, by using fluorescence techniques we show that the major sources for GFP-CB2 expression are B cells in spleen and blood and microglia in the brain. This novel CB2-GFP transgenic reporter mouse line represents a powerful resource to study CB2 expression in different cell types. Furthermore, it could be used for analyzing CB2-mediated mobilization and trafficking of immune cells as well as studying the fate of recruited immune cells in models of acute and chronic inflammation.

Prior stimulation of the endocannabinoid system prevents methamphetamine-induced dopaminergic neurotoxicity in the striatum through activation of CB2 receptors.

Methamphetamine toxicity is associated with cell death and loss of dopamine neuron terminals in the striatum similar to what is found in some neurodegenerative diseases. Conversely, the endocannabinoid system (ECS) has been suggested to be neuroprotective in the brain, and new pharmacological tools have been developed to increase their endogenous tone. In this study, we evaluated whether ECS stimulation could reduce the neurotoxicity of high doses of methamphetamine on the dopamine system. We found that methamphetamine alters the levels of the major endocannabinoids, anandamide (AEA) and 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG) in the striatum, suggesting that the ECS participates in the brain responses to methamphetamine. Δ(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a cannabis-derived agonist of both CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors, or inhibitors of the main enzymes responsible for the degradation of AEA and 2-AG (URB597 and JZL184, respectively), blunted the decrease in striatal protein levels of tyrosine hydroxylase induced by methamphetamine. In addition, antagonists of CB2, but not of CB1, blocked the preventive effects of URB597 and JZL184, suggesting that only the former receptor subtype is engaged in neuroprotection exerted by ECS stimulation. Finally, we found that methamphetamine increases striatal levels of the cytokine tumor necrosis factor alpha, an effect that was blocked by ECS stimulation. Altogether, our results indicate that stimulation of ECS prior to the administration of an overdose of methamphetamine considerably reduces the neurotoxicity of the drug through CB2 receptor activation and highlight a protective function for the ECS against the toxicity induced by drugs and other external insults to the brain. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled 'CNS Stimulants'.

CRISPR/Cas-induced double-strand breaks boost the frequency of gene replacements for humanizing the mouse Cnr2 gene.

The CRISPR/Cas technology has been successfully used to stimulate the integration of small DNA sequences in a target locus to produce gene mutations. However, many applications require homologous recombination using large gene-targeting constructs. Here we address the potential of CRISPR/Cas-mediated double-strand breaks to enhance the genetic engineering of large target sequences using a construct for "humanizing" the mouse Cnr2 gene locus. We designed a small-guide RNA that directs the induction of double strand breaks by Cas9 in the Cnr2 coding exon. By co-transfection of the CRISPR/Cas system with the 10 kb targeting construct we were able to boost the recombination frequency more than 200-fold from 0.27% to 67%. This simple technology can thus be used for the homologous integration of large gene fragments and should greatly enhance our ability to generate any kind of genetically altered mouse models.

Environmental enrichment does not reduce the rewarding and neurotoxic effects of methamphetamine.

Abuse of amphetamine analogues, such as methamphetamine (METH), represents an important health problem because of their powerful addictive and neurotoxic effects. Abuse of METH induces dopamine neuron terminals loss and cell death in the striatum similar to what is found in other neurodegenerative processes. Exposing mice and rats to enriched environments (EE) has been shown to produce significant protective effects against drug-induced reward as well as against neurodegenerative processes. Here, we investigated whether exposure to EE could reduce the METH-induced reward and neurotoxicity. For this, we reared mice for 2 months during early stages of life in standard environments or EE and then, at adulthood, we tested the ability of METH to induce conditioned place preference and neurotoxicity. We found that, contrary to what we found with other drugs such as cocaine and heroin, EE was unable to reduce the rewarding effects of METH. In addition, contrary to what we found with other toxins such as MPTP, EE did not diminish the striatal neurotoxicity induced by METH (4 x 10 mg/kg) as measured by dopamine content, tyrosine hydroxylase protein levels and apoptosis. Our results demonstrate that the rewarding and neurotoxic effects of METH are not reduced by EE and highlight the great risks associated with the increased popularity of this drug amongst the young population.