Mock ED, Mustafa M, Gunduz-Cinar O, Cinar R, Petrie GN, Kantae V, Di X, Ogasawara D, Varga ZV, Paloczi J, Miliano C, Donvito G, van Esbroeck ACM, van der Gracht AMF, Kotsogianni I, Park JK, Martella A, van der Wel T, Soethoudt M, Jiang M, Wendel TJ, Janssen APA, Bakker AT, Donovan CM, Castillo LI, Florea BI, Wat J, van den Hurk H, Wittwer M, Grether U, Holmes A, van Boeckel CAA, Hankemeier T, Cravatt BF, Buczynski MW, Hill MN, Pacher P, Lichtman AH and van der Stelt M

Nat Chem Biol (2020) 16: 667-675

Link to abstract

N-acylethanolamines (NAEs), which include the endocannabinoid anandamide, represent an important family of signaling lipids in the brain. The lack of chemical probes that modulate NAE biosynthesis in living systems hamper the understanding of the biological role of these lipids. Using a high-throughput screen, chemical proteomics and targeted lipidomics, we report here the discovery and characterization of LEI-401 as a CNS-active N-acylphosphatidylethanolamine phospholipase D (NAPE-PLD) inhibitor. LEI-401 reduced NAE levels in neuroblastoma cells and in the brain of freely moving mice, but not in NAPE-PLD KO cells and mice, respectively. LEI-401 activated the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis and impaired fear extinction, thereby emulating the effect of a cannabinoid CB1 receptor antagonist, which could be reversed by a fatty acid amide hydrolase inhibitor. Our findings highlight the distinctive role of NAPE-PLD in NAE biosynthesis in the brain and suggest the presence of an endogenous NAE tone controlling emotional behavior.