The endocannabinoid system (ECS) is widespread throughout the animal kingdom, its key components evolved a long time ago, and the ECS can be found in all vertebrate species.
To fully understand the role of the ECS it’s helpful to appreciate the fundamental concept of homeostasis. Homeostasis is the concept that most biological systems are actively regulated and a balance of conditions is attained and maintained. In each tissue, the ECS performs different tasks, but the goal remains the same; homeostasis, the maintenance of a stable internal environment despite fluctuations in the external environment.
The nervous system maintains homeostasis by rapidly controlling body functions. The nervous system communicates with various other systems (e.g., circulatory, digestive) through the use of specialised cells or neurons that receive and transmit electrical signals throughout the body. By this method, it is able to regulate most bodily functions. The body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS) is a vital molecular system for helping maintain homeostasis.
The three key components of the ECS are:
Cannabinoid receptors found on the surface of cells
Endocannabinoids, small molecules that activate cannabinoid receptors
Metabolic enzymes that break down endocannabinoids after they are used
Cannabinoid Receptors
Cannabinoid receptors sit on the surface of cells and “listen” to
conditions outside the cell. They transmit information about changing
conditions to the inside of the cell, kick-starting the appropriate
cellular response.
There are two major cannabinoid receptors: CB1 and CB2. These aren’t the only cannabinoid receptors, but they were the first ones discovered and remain the best-studied. CB1 receptors are one of the most abundant receptor types in the brain. These are the receptors that interact with THC to get people “high”. CB2 receptors are more abundant outside of the nervous system, in places like the immune system.
The CB2 receptors are the receptors for cannabinoids (CBD), as noted above, it is mainly expressed in immune tissues, highlighting the possibility that the endocannabinoid system has an immunomodulatory role.
As the CB2 receptors are in the peripheral nervous system, they have the capacity to influence pain, and inflammation.
After taking CBD the body’s enzymes break down the cannabinoids, the endocannabinoids look to bind with receptors. Researchers believe that CBD does not directly attach itself to the receptor but influences it in some way. Activating or stimulating these receptors is what allows for many of the health benefits that people associate with the compound.
