MAGL Inhibition Relieves Psoriasiform Inflammation and Pruritus Via Modulation of ALOX12-12-HETE Axis in Mice

  • Inflammation. 2026 Mar 3;49(1):92. doi: 10.1007/s10753-025-02383-5.
Shiying Lin  #  1 Xin Liu  #  2 Jian Jiang  1  3 Wenqiang Ge  4 Qingxiao Tao  1 Suwen Liu  1 Ouyang Zhanmu  4 Yang Yang  4 Man Li  5 Hongxiang Chen  6  7
Affiliations
  • 1. Department of Dermatology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430022, Hubei, China.
  • 2. Department of Dermatology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430071, Hubei, China.
  • 3. Department of Dermatology, Institute of Dermatology, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen Peking Unicersity-The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Medical Center, Shenzhen, 518036, Guangdong, China.
  • 4. Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China.
  • 5. Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, Hubei, China. [email protected].
  • 6. Department of Dermatology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430071, Hubei, China. [email protected].
  • 7. Shenzhen Nanshan People's Hospital, The 6th Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University Health Science Center, Shenzhen, 518052, Guangdong, China. [email protected].
  • # Contributed equally.
Abstract

The endogenous cannabinoid system, comprising endocannabinoids, cannabinoid receptors, and Enzymes responsible for synthesis and degradation of endocannabinoids, is integral to the regulation of skin inflammation. However, the precise contributions of cannabinoid-metabolizing Enzymes including fatty acid amide hydrolase and monoacylglycerol Lipase (MAGL) remain poorly defined in psoriatic pathogenesis. In this study, we demonstrated the significant MAGL upregulation in psoriatic lesions and established that pharmacological inhibition of MAGL markedly reduced psoriasiform inflammation and pruritus in imiquimod-challenged C57BL/6 mice. Mechanically, inhibition of MAGL decreased the expression of 12-lipoxygenase (ALOX12), subsequently reducing the synthesis of 12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12-HETE), which is the principal metabolite of ALOX12. Importantly, these effects were reversed by Cannabinoid Receptor 2 (CB2R) antagonism or knockout, establishing a signaling axis in which MAGL inhibition activates CB2R to suppress ALOX12. Collectively, our findings identified MAGL as a potentially targetable nexus in psoriasiform inflammation and itch.

Keywords
Arachidonic acid; Inflammation; Monoacylglycerol lipase; Pruritus; Psoriasis.
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