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To examine the role of cannabinoid CB2 receptors in the neurodegenerative process of Huntington disease (HD), researchers examined levels of CB2 receptors and microglial markers in postmortem brain tissue from patients with HD. They also tested the effects of CB2 gene knockout and of CB2 agonists in mice.
Compared with healthy controls, patients with HD had about twice the expression of CB2 receptors. The elevation in receptor expression paralleled elevations in microglial markers, suggesting that the receptors were located on microglia.
In a transgenic mouse model of HD with expression of a mutant form of human huntingtin, the authors observed similar elevations in CB2-receptor expression. Genetic knockout of CB2 receptors in these mice led …