Morgan & Claypool The Endocannabinoid System in Local and Systemic Inflammation (Colloquium Series on Integrated Systems Physiology: From Molecule to Function)

This book focuses on the role of the endocannabinoid system in local and systemic inflammation, with individual chapters written by experts in the field of cannabinoid research and medicine. The topics explore the actions of the endocannabinoid system on the immune system, including neuroinflammation in autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis, and in neurodegenerative disorders such as Huntington's and Alzheimer's, as well as local and systemic inflammatory conditions affecting organs including the eye (uveitis and corneal inflammation), the bladder (interstitial cystitis), pancreas (diabetes), cardiovascular system (stroke), joints (arthritis), and sepsis. The objective of this book is to provide knowledge transfer on the use of cannabinoids in inflammatory disease by critically examining preclinical and clinical research on the immunomodulatory actions of the endocannabinoid system, with specific emphasis on the actions of cannabinoids in diseases where inflammation is a prominent component. By drawing these results together, we seek to provide further understanding of the complexities of endocannabinoid system modulation of immune function and identify potential uses and limitations for cannabinoid-based therapeutics. About the Author Dr. Christian Lehmann is Professor of Anesthesia, Pharmacology, Microbiology and Immunology, and Physiology and Biophysics at Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada. He is also Staff Anesthesiologist in the Department of Anesthesia, Nova Scotia Health Authority, Halifax. Dr. Lehmann has 25 years of experience in experimental and clinical inflammation research. He established experimental intravital imaging laboratories in Berlin and Greifswald, Germany. His focus of research is the microcirculation, i.e., capillary blood flow, cell-cell-interactions, and endothelial pathology. He participated in diverse German and international clinical multicenter trials, e.g., in sepsis. He joined Dalhousie University in 2007 and currently supervises research in three laboratories with modern equipment to study the 110 THE ENDOCANNABINOID SYSTEM IN LOCAL AND SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATION microcirculation under various conditions experimentally and clinically. He is the author of more than 150 original publications, 13 book chapters and almost 200 published abstracts. He is a member of the Dalhousie Inflammation Group (DIG), the Microcirculation Diagnostics and Applied Studies (MiDAS) research group and the Cystic Fibrosis Translational Research (CFTR) group. In 2009, he founded the RESIST (Research in the Endocannabinoid System in Inflammation, Sepsis and Trauma) group with Dr. Melanie Kelly and others at Dalhousie University. Dr. Juan Zhou is Associate Professor of Anaesthesia, Pain Management, and Perioperative Medicine at Dalhousie University. She received her M.D. from Xian Medical University in 1986, and practiced as an ophthalmologist at the Shaanxi Provincial Hospital in China. After moving to Canada, Dr. Zhou obtained her M.Sc. in Biology in 1993 and her Ph.D. in Immunology in 2001 from Dalhousie University. Dr. Zhou's principal research interests are in immunomodulation in transplantation tolerance and inflammation. Her current research focus is investigating the role of the endocannabinoid system in inflammatory disorders including experimental sepsis, central nerve system injury-induced immunosuppression, and interstitial cystitis. Dr. Zhou has over 60 peer-reviewed scientific journal publications, books, and book chapters. She is an avid badminton player, and she enjoys canoeing through the lakes of Nova Scotia.