Cannabinol (CBN) Influences the Ion Channels and Synaptic-Related Genes in NSC-34 Cell Line: A Transcriptomic Study

Neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and schizophrenia exhibit alteration of neuronal excitability due to the dysfunction of the molecular and functional features of ion channels and synapse. Ion channels and synapse are considered suitable drug targets within modern pharmacology. Cannabinoids have received great attention as a novel therapeutic approach for their effects on human health due to modulate the neurotransmitter release through interaction with the endocannabinoid system. In this study, we investigated the effect of Cannabinol (CBN) on NSC-34 motor neuron-like cells physiology by next-generation sequencing analysis. We discovered that CBN strongly influences the ontologies related to ion channels and synapse activity at all doses tested. Specifically, the genes coding to calcium and potassium voltage channel subunits, and the glutamatergic and GABAergic receptors were up-regulated (Cacna1b, Cacna1h, Cacng8, Kcnc3, Kcnd1, Kcnd2, Kcnj4, Grik5, Grik1, Slc17a7, Gabra5). Conversely, the genes involved to the serotoninergic and cholinergic pathways resulted as down-regulated (Htr3a, Htr3b, Htr1b, Chrna3, Chrnb2, Chrnb4). These finding highlight that CBN influences the expression of genes related to ion influx and synaptic transmission.