This chapter aims to elucidate an example of the drug development process for a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), focusing specifically on the cannabinoid receptors CB and CB. Various techniques can be employed for different purposes when characterizing a new compound targeting these receptors.Initially, the compound affinity for both cannabinoid receptors is assessed through binding competition assays.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCannabis plant has been used from ancient times with therapeutic purposes for treating human pathologies, but the identification of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the therapeutic properties of the phytocannabinoids, the active compounds in this plant, occurred in the last years of the past century. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, seminal studies demonstrated the existence of cannabinoid receptors and other elements of the so-called endocannabinoid system. These G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are a key element in the functions assigned to endocannabinoids and appear to serve as promising pharmacological targets.
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