Animal studies examining the mechanisms of physiological change induced by cannabis provide insight as to the probable source of CNS susceptibility, documenting the existence of cannabinoid (CB-1) receptors in numerous neuronal substrates and in cell processes that represent precursors to myelin. Present in astrocytes (Bouaboula et al., 1995; Sanchez et al., 1998), microglia (Moldrich and Wenger, 2000; Rodriguez et al., 2001; Waksman et al., 1999; Walter et al., 2003), and oligodendrocytes (Molina-Holgado et al., 2002a), CB-1 receptors are known to affect glial cell functions including migration toward sites of injury (Walter et al., 2003). These processes may be adversely impacted by early marijuana use and result in an altered trajectory of white matter development.
