Pharmacology and potential therapeutic uses of some cannabinoids

Roger Pertwee speaks to Jennifer Straiton, Assistant Editor, at the BNA 2019 Festival of Neuroscience (14–17 April, Dublin, Ireland), where he gave a talk titled ‘Pharmacological actions and potential novel therapeutic uses of certain plant and synthetic cannabinoids’. Roger Pertwee is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Aberdeen (Scotland, UK), where he has been active in scientific research since 1974. He began his research career at the University of Oxford (UK) where he gained three postgraduate degrees: an MA in biochemistry, a DPhil in pharmacology and a DSc in physiological sciences. His research focuses on the pharmacology of cannabinoids, both on their mechanisms of action and on their potential therapeutic uses. He has held major roles in multiple major discoveries in the field including; the discovery of a cannabinoid CB1 receptor allosteric site, the pharmacological characterization of various phytocannabinoids as well as the co-discovery of endocannabinoids and the co-discovery and characterization of novel synthetic cannabinoids.