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Cannabinoids as Prospective Anti-Cancer Drugs: Mechanism of Action in Healthy and Cancer Cells

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Cell Biology and Translational Medicine, Volume 19

Part of the book series: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology ((CBTMED,volume 1410))

Abstract

Endogenous and exogenous cannabinoids modulate many physiological and pathological processes by binding classical cannabinoid receptors 1 (CB1) or 2 (CB2) or non-cannabinoid receptors. Cannabinoids are known to exert antiproliferative, apoptotic, anti-migratory and anti-invasive effect on cancer cells by inducing or inhibiting various signaling cascades. In this chapter, we specifically emphasize the latest research works about the alterations in endocannabinoid system (ECS) components in malignancies and cancer cell proliferation, migration, invasion, angiogenesis, autophagy, and death by cannabinoid administration, emphasizing their mechanism of action, and give a future perspective for clinical use.

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Abbreviations

2-AG:

2-Arachidonoyl glycerol

AA-5HT:

Arachidonoyl serotonin

ABDH6/12:

Alpha/beta-hydrolase domain containing 6/12

ACEA:

Arachidonyl-2′chloroethylamide

ACF:

Aberrant crypt foci

ACPA:

Arachidonoyl cyclopropilamide

AEA:

Anandamide

AKT:

Protein kinase B

AMPK:

5’ AMP-activated protein kinase

ANG-2:

Angiotensin II

ASD :

Autism spectrum disorder

ATF-4 :

Activating transcription factor-4

BAX :

Bcl-2-associated X protein

BCL-2 :

B-cell lymphoma 2

BDS:

Botanical cannabinoid extraction

CAMKKβ :

Calcium ions/calmodulin-stimulated protein kinase kinase β

CAMP :

Cyclic adenosine monophosphate

CB :

Cannabinoid

CB1 :

Cannabinoid receptor 1

CB2 :

Cannabinoid receptor 2

CBC:

Cannabichromene

CBD:

Cannabidiol

CBDA:

Cannabidiolic acid

CBDV:

Cannabidivarin

CBE:

Cannabielsoin

CBG :

Cannabigerol

CBL:

Cannabicyclol

CBN :

Cannabinol

CBND:

Cannabinodiol

CBT:

Cannabitriol

CHOP :

C/EBP homologous protein

COX:

Cyclooxygenase

CXCR4:

C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4

CYC D1:

Cyclin D1

CYP-450:

Cytochrome P450

DAGL:

Diacylglycerol lipase

DC:

Dendritic cell

DS :

Dravet syndrome

ECS:

Endocannabinoid system

EGF :

Epithelial growth factor

EGFR:

Epidermal growth factor receptor

ER:

Endoplasmic reticulum

ERK1/2:

Extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2

FAAH:

Fatty acid amid hydrolase

FAK:

Focal adhesion kinase

FDA:

Food and Drug Administration

GEM:

Gemcitabin

GPR:

G-protein coupled receptor

GRP78 :

Chaperone protein glucose-regulated protein 78

GVHD :

Graft versus host disease

HUVEC:

Human umbilical vein endothelial cell

ICAM-1 :

Intercellular adhesion molecule-1

IGF-IR:

Type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor

IL6/10:

Interleukin 6/10

iNOS:

Inducible nitric oxide synthase

JNK :

c-Jun N-terminal kinase

MAGL:

Monoacylglycerol lipase

MAPK:

Mitogen-activating protein kinase

MDSC:

Myeloid-derived suppressor cell

MMP-2/9 :

Matrix metalloproteinase 2/9

MS :

Multiple sclerosis

MTORC-1/2 :

Mammalian target of rapamycin C-1/2

NAAA:

N-Acylethanolamide-hydrolysing acid amidase

NAPE:

N-acyl phosphatidylethanolamine

NAPE-PLD:

N-acyl phosphatidylethanolamine phospholipase D

NAT:

N-Acyltransferase

NFκB:

Nuclear factor kappa B

NOXA :

Phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate-induced protein 1

NSCLC:

Non–small cell lung cancer

OEA:

Oleoylethanolamide

P21 :

Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1

P27 :

Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1B

PAI-1:

Plasminogen activator inhibitor 1

PAK1:

P21-activated kinase 1

PEA:

Palmitoylethanolamide

PI3K:

Phosphoinositide 3 kinase

PKA :

Protein kinase A

PLC:

Phospholipase C

PPARα :

Peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor α

PPARγ:

Peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor γ

ROS :

Reactive oxygen species

SMAC :

Second mitochondria-derived activator of caspase

STAT3:

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3

TIMP :

Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase

TNF-α:

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha

TRIB3 :

Tribbles pseudokinase 3

TRPV :

Transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily V member

UPA :

Urokinase-type plasminogen activator

VCAM1 :

Vascular cell adhesion molecule 1

VEGF :

Vascular endothelial growth factor

XIAP :

X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis

βIII Tub:

βIII Tubulin

Δ9-THC:

Delta-9-tetrahydracannabinol

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Acknowledgements

This work received no external funding.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

The authors declare that this article does not contain any study with human participants or animals.

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Correspondence to Petek Korkusuz .

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© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

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Boyacıoğlu, Ö., Korkusuz, P. (2022). Cannabinoids as Prospective Anti-Cancer Drugs: Mechanism of Action in Healthy and Cancer Cells. In: Turksen, K. (eds) Cell Biology and Translational Medicine, Volume 19. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology(), vol 1410. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/5584_2022_748

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