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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Aug 1.
Published in final edited form as: Gastroenterology. 2016 Apr 29;151(2):252–266. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2016.04.015

Figure 1. Distribution of enzymes involved in the biosynthesis and degradation of endocannabinoids in the nervous system.

Figure 1

The role of 2-AG as a dominant retrograde synaptic transmitter and putative roles of anandamide (AEA) as an anterograde and intracellular transmitter. Anandamide is synthesized from NAPE by a specific phospholipase D (NAPE-PLD) and is degraded by FAAH. 2-AG is synthesized by DAGL-α and degraded by MAGL and ABHD-6 and ABHD-12. Anandamide and 2-AG can also be metabolized by COX2, which is shown in post-synaptic neurons but can also occur presynaptically. AA, arachidonic acid; AGs, 2-acylglycerols; DAGs, diacylglycerols; ER, endoplasmic reticulum; MAPK, mitogen-activated protein kinases; PIP2, phosphoinositide bisphosphate; PKA, protein kinase A; PPARs, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors; TRPs, transient receptor potential channels; VGCCs, voltage-gated calcium channels. Dashed lines denote inactivation. Adapted from Di Marzo et al.118