The legalization of cannabis in some states has intensified interest in the potential for cannabis and its constituents to lead to novel therapeutics for pain. Our understanding of the cellular mechanisms underlying cannabinoid actions in the brain have lagged behind opioids; however, the current opioid epidemic has also increased attention on the use of cannabinoids as alternatives to opioids for pain, especially chronic pain that requires long-term use. Endogenous cannabinoids are lipid signaling molecules that have complex roles in modulating neuronal function throughout the brain. In this review, we discuss cannabinoid functions in the descending pain modulatory pathway, a brain circuit that integrates cognitive and emotional processing of pain to modulate incoming sensory inputs. In addition, we highlight areas where further studies are necessary to understand cannabinoid regulation of descending pain modulation.

中文翻译：

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下行疼痛调节回路中的大麻素：在炎症中的作用。


一些州的大麻合法化增强了人们对大麻及其成分开发新的疼痛疗法的潜力的兴趣。我们对大麻素在大脑中作用的细胞机制的理解落后于阿片类药物。然而，当前阿片类药物的流行也增加了人们对使用大麻素作为阿片类药物替代品治疗疼痛，特别是需要长期使用的慢性疼痛的关注。内源性大麻素是脂质信号分子，在调节整个大脑的神经元功能中具有复杂的作用。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了大麻素在下行疼痛调节通路中的功能，下行疼痛调节通路是一种整合疼痛的认知和情感处理以调节传入的感觉输入的大脑回路。此外，我们强调了需要进一步研究的领域，以了解大麻素对下行疼痛调节的调节。