Plasma concentrations of endocannabinoids and related primary Fatty Acid amides in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Endocannabinoids (ECs) and related N-acyl-ethanolamides (NAEs) play
important roles in stress response regulation, anxiety and
traumatic memories. In view of the evidence that circulating EC
levels are elevated under acute mild stressful conditions in
humans, we hypothesized that individuals with traumatic stress
exposure and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), an anxiety
disorder characterized by the inappropriate persistence and
uncontrolled retrieval of traumatic memories, show measurable
alterations in plasma EC and NAE concentrations. We determined
plasma concentrations of the ECs anandamide (ANA) and
2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) and the NAEs palmitoylethanolamide
(PEA), oleoylethanolamide (OEA), stearoylethanolamine (SEA), and
N-oleoyldopamine (OLDA) by HPLC-MS-MS in patients with PTSD
(n = 10), trauma-exposed individuals without evidence of PTSD
(n = 9) and in healthy control subjects (n = 29). PTSD was
diagnosed according to DSM-IV criteria by administering the
Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), which also assesses
traumatic events. Individuals with PTSD showed significantly higher
plasma concentrations of ANA (0.48±0.11 vs. 0.36±0.14 ng/ml,
p = 0.01), 2-AG (8.93±3.20 vs. 6.26±2.10 ng/ml, p