Enhanced brain levels of anandamide after treatment with inhibitors of fatty acid amide hydrolase, the main enzyme responsible for its degradation, seem to affect the rewarding and reinforcing actions of many drugs of abuse.
Importantly, FAAH blockade does not elicit any apparent psychomimetic effects associated with THC or produce reinforcing effects that are predictive of human drug abuse.
Although a link between the FAAHP129T variant and human drug abuse has been reported, the extent of risk and specific types of substance addiction vulnerability remain to be determined.
These findings indicate that the natural 385A SNP in the human FAAH gene produces a mutant enzyme with reduced cellular stability, thus fortifying a potential link between functional abnormalities in the endocannabinoid system and drug abuse and dependence.
Collectively, these results suggest that genetic mutations in FAAH may constitute important risk factors for problem drug use and support a potential link between functional abnormalities in the endogenous cannabinoid system and drug abuse and dependence.