Experimental cannabidiol treatment reduces early pancreatic inflammation in type 1 diabetes

Issue title: Selected papers of the 18th European Conference for Clinical Hemorheology and Microcirculation (ESCHM), 5-8 June, 2016, Lisbon, Portugal

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Lehmann, Christian^{a; b; c; d; *} | Fisher, Nicholas B.^e | Tugwell, Barna^f | Szczesniak, Anna^b | Kelly, Mel^b | Zhou, Juan^{a; c}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Anesthesia, Pain Management and Perioperative Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada | [b] Department of Pharmacology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada | [c] Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada | [d] Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada | [e] Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada | [f] Department of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Dr. Christian Lehmann, MD, PhD, FRCPC, Dalhousie University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Anesthesia, Pain Management and Perioperative Medicine, 5850 College Street, Halifax, NS, B3H 1X5, Canada. Tel.: +1 902 473 2331; Fax: +1 902 423 9454; E-mail: chlehmann@dal.ca.

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Destruction of the insulin-producing beta cells in type 1 diabetes (T1D) is induced by invasion of immune cells causing pancreatic inflammation. Cannabidiol (CBD), a phytocannabinoid, derived from the plant, Cannabis sativa, was shown to lower the incidence of diabetes in non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice, an animal model of spontaneous T1D development. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to investigate the impact of experimental CBD treatment on early pancreatic inflammation in T1D by intravital microscopy (IVM) in NOD mice. METHODS: Seven-week-old female NOD mice were prophylactically administered daily 5 mg/kg CBD or control vehicle i.p. five times weekly for ten weeks. Animals underwent IVM following confirmation of T1D diagnosis by blood glucose testing. Leukocyte activation and functional capillary density (FCD) were quantified via IVM. RESULTS: CBD-treated NOD mice developed T1D later and showed significantly reduced leukocyte activation and increased FCD in the pancreatic microcirculation. CONCLUSIONS: Experimental CBD treatment reduced markers of inflammation in the microcirculation of the pancreas studied by intravital microscopy.

Keywords: Type 1 diabetes, inflammation, intravital microscopy, leukocyte adherence, functional capillary density, cytokines, adhesion molecules

DOI: 10.3233/CH-168021

Journal: Clinical Hemorheology and Microcirculation, vol. 64, no. 4, pp. 655-662, 2016