[Neuroprotective mechanisms of cannabinoids in brain ischemia and neurodegenerative disorders].

One of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality is neurologic dysfunction; its high incidence has led to an intense research of the mechanisms that protect the central nervous system from hypoxia and ischemia. The main challenge is to block the biochemical events leading to neuronal death. This may be achieved by neuroprotective mechanisms that avoid the metabolic and immunologic cascades that follow a neurological damage. When it occurs, several pathophysiological events develop including cytokine release, oxidative stress and excitotoxicity. Neuroprotective effects of cannabinoids to all those mechanisms have been reported in animal models of brain ischemia, excitotoxicity, brain trauma and neurodegenerative disorders. Some endocannabinoid analogs are being tested in clinical studies (I-III phase) for acute disorders involving neuronal death (brain trauma and ischemia). The study of the cannabinoid system may allow the discovery of effective neuroprotective drugs for the treatment of neurological disorders.