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The Journal of Neuroscience, December 17, 2008, 28(51):13985-13994; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3221-08.2008

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Cellular/Molecular
Endogenous Fatty Acid Ethanolamides Suppress Nicotine-Induced Activation of Mesolimbic Dopamine Neurons through Nuclear Receptors

Miriam Melis,^1 * Giuliano Pillolla,^1 * Antonio Luchicchi,¹ Anna Lisa Muntoni,² Sevil Yasar,³ Steven R. Goldberg,⁴ and Marco Pistis¹

¹B. B. Brodie Department of Neuroscience, and ²Consiglio Nazionale delle Richerche Institute of Neuroscience, University of Cagliari, 09042 Monserrato, Italy, ³Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, and ⁴Preclinical Pharmacology Section, Behavioral Neuroscience Research Branch, Intramural Research Program, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute on Drug Abuse–National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, Maryland 21224

Correspondence should be addressed to Marco Pistis, B. B. Brodie Department of Neuroscience, University of Cagliari, Cittadella Universitaria, 09042 Monserrato, Italy. Email: mpistis{at}unica.it

Nicotine stimulates the activity of mesolimbic dopamine neurons, which is believed to mediate the rewarding and addictive properties of tobacco use. Accumulating evidence suggests that the endocannabinoid system might play a major role in neuronal mechanisms underlying the rewarding properties of drugs of abuse, including nicotine. Here, we investigated the modulation of nicotine effects by the endocannabinoid system on dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area with electrophysiological techniques in vivo and in vitro. We discovered that pharmacological inhibition of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), the enzyme that catabolizes fatty acid ethanolamides, among which the endocannabinoid anandamide (AEA) is the best known, suppressed nicotine-induced excitation of dopamine cells. Importantly, this effect was mimicked by the administration of the FAAH substrates oleoylethanolamide (OEA) and palmitoylethanolamide (PEA), but not methanandamide, the hydrolysis resistant analog of AEA. OEA and PEA are naturally occurring lipid signaling molecules structurally related to AEA, but devoid of affinity for cannabinoid receptors. They blocked the effects of nicotine by activation of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor- (PPAR-), a nuclear receptor transcription factor involved in several aspects of lipid metabolism and energy balance. Activation of PPAR- triggered a nongenomic stimulation of tyrosine kinases, which might lead to phosphorylation and negative regulation of neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. These data indicate for the first time that the anorexic lipids OEA and PEA possess neuromodulatory properties as endogenous ligands of PPAR- in the brain and provide a potential new target for the treatment of nicotine addiction.

Key words: dopamine neurons; nicotine; electrophysiology; endocannabinoids; fatty acid amide hydrolase; patch clamp; peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor

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Received July 9, 2008; revised Nov. 10, 2008; accepted Nov. 12, 2008.

Correspondence should be addressed to Marco Pistis, B. B. Brodie Department of Neuroscience, University of Cagliari, Cittadella Universitaria, 09042 Monserrato, Italy. Email: mpistis{at}unica.it

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