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Inhibition of sodium conductance by cannabigerol contributes to a reduction of neuronal dorsal root ganglion excitability

View ORCID ProfileMohammad-Reza Ghovanloo, Mark Estacion, Peng Zhao, Sulayman Dib-Hajj, Stephen G. Waxman
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.09.14.460359
Mohammad-Reza Ghovanloo
1Department of Neurology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
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Mark Estacion
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Peng Zhao
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Sulayman Dib-Hajj
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Stephen G. Waxman
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  • For correspondence: stephen.waxman@yale.edu
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ABSTRACT

Cannabigerol (CBG), a non-psychotropic phytocannabinoid, is a precursor for cannabis derivatives, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol (CBD). Like CBD, CBG has been suggested as an analgesic. A previous study reported CBG (10 μM) blocks voltage-gated sodium (Nav) currents in CNS neurons. However, the manner in which CBG inhibits Nav channels, and whether this effect contributes to CBG’s potential analgesic behavior remain unknown. Genetic and functional studies have validated Nav1.7 as an opportune target for analgesic drug development. The efforts to develop therapeutic selective Nav1.7 blockers have been unsuccessful thus far, possibly due to issues in occupancy; drugs have been administered at concentrations many folds above IC50, resulting in loss of isoform-selectivity, and increasing off-target effects. We reasoned that an alternative approach could use compounds possessing 2 important properties: ultra-hydrophobicity and functional selectivity. Hydrophobicity could enhance absorption into neuronal cells especially with local administration. Functional selectivity could reduce likelihood of side-effects. As CBG is ultra-hydrophobic (cLogD=7.04), we sought to determine whether it also possesses functional selectivity against Nav channels that are expressed in dorsal root ganglion (DRG). We found that CBG is a ~10-fold state-dependent Nav inhibitor (KI-KR: ~2-20 μM) with an average Hill-slope of ~2. We determined that at lower concentrations, CBG predominantly blocks sodium Gmax and slows recovery from inactivation; however, as concentration is increased, CBG also hyperpolarizes Nav inactivation curves. Our modeling and multielectrode array recordings suggest that CBG attenuates DRG excitability, which is likely linked with Nav inhibition. As most Nav1.7 channels are inactivated at DRG resting membrane potential, they are more likely to be inhibited by lower CBG concentrations, suggesting functional selectivity against Nav1.7 compared to other Navs (via Gmax block).

Competing Interest Statement

The authors have declared no competing interest.

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The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
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Posted September 16, 2021.
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Inhibition of sodium conductance by cannabigerol contributes to a reduction of neuronal dorsal root ganglion excitability
Mohammad-Reza Ghovanloo, Mark Estacion, Peng Zhao, Sulayman Dib-Hajj, Stephen G. Waxman
bioRxiv 2021.09.14.460359; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.09.14.460359
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Inhibition of sodium conductance by cannabigerol contributes to a reduction of neuronal dorsal root ganglion excitability
Mohammad-Reza Ghovanloo, Mark Estacion, Peng Zhao, Sulayman Dib-Hajj, Stephen G. Waxman
bioRxiv 2021.09.14.460359; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.09.14.460359

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