AEA (anandamide) also activates the vanilloid receptor 1, a transient receptor potential cation channel. TRPV1 is classically activated by hot chilli peppers (capsaicin) [72] and heat at noxious levels as well as by AEA whose affinity for it can be increased 10-fold during states of pathological stress [73-75] . The gene encoding the vanilloid receptor 1 (TRPV1) occurs on human chromosome 17p13.3, is 44kb long and has 17 exons. Research [76,77] suggests that TRPV1 may serve as a unique receptor site for endogenous, and possibly exogenous, cannabinoids. We are not aware of any human association studies of TRPV1 and substance dependence, although several functional SNPs have been characterized in this gene.
