Worms as a model for understanding endocannabinoid system could inform better medications

Image of worm that is genetically engineered so that certain neurons and muscles are fluorescent. Green dots are neurons that respond to cannabinoids. Credit: Stacy Levichev

If you give a worm some weed, he might just need a snack to go with it.

Worms exposed to a cannabinoid become even more interested in the kind of food that they’d already prefer, new UO research shows. The effect is similar to craving potato chips and ice cream after a few puffs of marijuana—a phenomenon known scientifically as “hedonic feeding,” but colloquially called “the munchies.”

The study, led by neuroscientist Shawn Lockery in the College of Arts and Sciences, points to worms as a useful tool for understanding more about the many roles that cannabinoids naturally play in the body. And it could help researchers develop better drugs that target this system. He and his team published their findings April 20 in Current Biology.

The endocannabinoid system is a far-reaching…

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