Science Help! How Does Cannabis Work in the Body and Brain to Produce Its Effects?
Question by …: Science Help! How does cannabis work in the body and brain to produce its effects?
Don’t worry, I’m not trying to use it, it’s for my gcse coursework and I’d like to be very scientific and get into detail about how it works. You know, include stuff about synapses and THC and such. But I’ve been looking around and I’ve only read about the EFFECTS and it doesn’t say what cannabis does in the body/brain to produce these effects.
Please help and answer in as much detail as possible please! 🙂
Thank you 🙂
Best answer:
Answer by Aaron
This link should provide you with a good introduction for GCSE purposes. It briefly covers the mechanism of action of THC and cannabinoid receptors.
http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/addiction/drugs/mouse.html
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2 Responses to Science Help! How Does Cannabis Work in the Body and Brain to Produce Its Effects?
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The THC relaxes parts of the brain and nervous connections are slacker/less accurate. That’s what creates the change in ability, speed of body and mind slow down significantly. But this “numbing” sort of effect helps greatly with those in pain, by the same alteration of the brain and nervous system.
inhibitory neurotransmitters are normally present in dopamine synapses, inhibiting the release of dopamine. the body naturally produces a cannabinoid substance called anadamide. this binds to cannabinoid, or THC receptors on the neurones that produce this inhibitor. this stops these neurones releasing the inhibitor and allos dopamine to be released by the dopamine-releasing neurones.
Marijuana contains a chemical called THC which is very similar in shape to anadamide. THC binds to the cannabinoid or THC receptors and suppresses the release of the inhibitory neurotransmitter. as a result, dopamine is released.
Anandamide breaks down very quickly in the body so it causes only a temporary release of dopamine. THC, however, remains for much longer, causing a greater release of dopamine and a lasting ‘high’.