• DOI:10.1096/fj.02-0795fje
• Corpus ID: 15656361

Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis by cannabinoids

@article{Blazquez2003InhibitionOT,
  title={Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis by cannabinoids},
  author={Cristina Blázquez and Mar{\'i}a Llanos Casanova and Anna M. Planas and Teresa G{\'o}mez del Pulgar and Concepci{\'o}n Villanueva and Mar{\'i}a Jes{\'u}s Fern{\'a}ndez-Ace{\~n}ero and Juli{\'a}n Aragon{\'e}s and John W Huffman and Jos{\'e} Luis Jorcano and Manuel Guzm{\'a}n},
  journal={The FASEB Journal},
  year={2003},
  volume={17}
}

• C. Blázquez, M. Casanova, +7 authors M. Guzmán
• Published 1 March 2003
• Biology
• The FASEB Journal

Cannabinoids, the active components of marijuana and their derivatives, induce tumor regression in rodents (8). However, the mechanism of cannabinoid antitumoral action in vivo is as yet unknown. Here we show that local administration of a nonpsychoactive cannabinoid to mice inhibits angiogenesis of malignant gliomas as determined by immunohistochemical analyses and vascular permeability assays. In vitro and in vivo experiments show that at least two mechanisms may be involved in this cannabinoid action: the direct inhibition of vascular endothelial cell migration and survival as well as the decrease of the expression of proangiogenic factors (vascular endothelial growth factor and angiopoietin‐2) and matrix metalloproteinase‐2 in the tumors. Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis may allow new strategies for the design of cannabinoid‐based antitumoral therapies.