Direct Stimulatory Effects of the CB₂ Ligand JTE 907 in Human and Mouse Islets

The endocannabinoid system is a complex cell-signaling network through which endogenous cannabinoid ligands regulate cell function by interaction with CB₁ and CB₂ cannabinoid receptors, and with the novel cannabinoid receptor GPR55. CB₁, CB₂, and GPR55 are expressed by islet β-cells where they modulate insulin secretion. We have previously shown that administration of the putative CB₂ antagonist/inverse agonist JTE 907 to human islets did not affect the insulinotropic actions of CB₂ agonists and it unexpectedly stimulated insulin secretion on its own. In this study, we evaluated whether the lack of antagonism could be related to the ability of JTE 907 to act as a GPR55 agonist.

We used islets isolated from human donors and from Gpr55 and Gpr55 mice and quantified the effects of incubation with 10 μM JTE 907 on dynamic insulin secretion, apoptosis, and β-cell proliferation by radioimmunoassay, luminescence caspase 3/7 activity, and immunofluorescence, respectively. We also measured islet IP₁ and cAMP accumulation using fluorescence assays, and monitored [Ca²⁺]_i elevations by Fura-2 single cell microfluorometry.

JTE 907 significantly stimulated insulin secretion from islets isolated from human donors and islets from Gpr55 and Gpr55 mice. These stimulatory effects were accompanied by significant elevations of IP₁ and [Ca²⁺]_i, but there were no changes in cAMP generation. JTE 907 also significantly reduced cytokine-induced apoptosis in human and mouse islets and promoted human β-cell proliferation.

Our observations show for the first time that JTE 907 acts as a G_q-coupled agonist in islets to stimulate insulin secretion and maintain β-cell mass in a GPR55-independent fashion.