Fatty acid amide hydrolase inhibitors produce rapid anti-anxiety responses through amygdala long-term depression in male rodents.

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“Pathological anxiety is the most common type of psychiatric disorder. The current first-line anti-anxiety treatment, selective serotonin/noradrenalin reuptake inhibitors, produces a delayed onset of action with modest therapeutic and substantial adverse effects, and long-term use of the fast-acting anti-anxiety benzodiazepines causes severe adverse effects.

Inhibition of the fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), the endocannabinoid N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA) degradative enzyme, produces anti-anxiety effects without substantial “unwanted effects” of cannabinoids, but its anti-anxiety mechanism is unclear.

CONCLUSION:

We propose that the rapid anti-anxiety effects of FAAH inhibition are due to AEA activation of astroglial CB1R and subsequent basolateral amygdala LTD in vivo.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28234213

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