The CB1 antagonist rimonabant is adjunctively therapeutic as well as monotherapeutic in an animal model of Parkinson's disease

Acute injections of 8 mg/kg of 3,4-dihydroxy-l-phenylalanine (l-DOPA) or 0.05 mg/kg rimonabant equally improved contralateral forepaw stepping in rats with unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesions, and their combination improved stepping more than either drug alone. However, 0.05 mg/kg rimonabant did not alter the changes in stepping produced by acute injections of a dyskinesic dose of 35 mg/kg l-DOPA. Thus, not only is a cannabinoid antagonist monotherapeutic in this animal model of Parkinson's disease, but it also enhances the therapeutic effect of a moderate, but not a high, dose of l-DOPA.