Patent ID: 7214716

Claim:
A method of treating a disease or disorder that is mediated by peripheral cannabinoid receptors CB2 in an animal, which comprises administering to an animal in need of such treatment a pharmaceutical composition that includes a therapeutically effective amount of a C2 agonist that binds to such receptors to treat the disease or disorder, wherein the CB2 agonist is a compound of the general formula: having the (3S,4S) configuration, and which is essentially free of the (3R,4R) enantiomer, wherein: A—B designates an optional double bond, R 1 is (a)—R′N(R″) 2 wherein R′ is C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl and each R″, which may be the same or different, is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl optionally containing a terminal —OR′″ or —OC(O)R′″ moiety wherein R′″ is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl, (b) —Q wherein Q is a heterocyclic moiety having a labile hydrogen atom so that said moiety acts as a carboxylic acid analogue, (c) —R′X wherein R′ is C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl and X is halogen, (d) —R′C(O)N(R″) 2 wherein R′ is a direct bond or C 1 –C5 straight or branched chain alkyl and each R′″, which may be the same or different, is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl optionally containing a terminal —OR′″ or —OC(O)R′″ moiety wherein R′″ is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl, (e) —R′C(O)OR″ wherein R′ is a direct bond or C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl and R″ is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl optionally containing a terminal —OR′″ or —OC(O)R′″ moiety wherein R′″ is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl, (f) —R′ wherein R′ is C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl, or (g) —R′OR′″ wherein R′ is C 1 –C 5 straight or branched chain alkyl and R′″ is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 alkyl; G is hydrogen, halogen, or —OR 2 wherein R 2 is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 alkyl optionally containing a terminal —OR′″, —OC(O)R′″, —C(O)OR′″, or —C(O)R′″ moiety wherein R′″ is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 alkyl; and R 3 is (a) C 1 –C 12 straight or branched chain alkyl, (b) —OR″″, in which R″″ is a straight chain or branched C 2 –C 9 alkyl which may be substituted at the terminal carbon atom by a phenyl group, or (c) —(CH 2 ) n OR′″ wherein n is an integer of 1 to 7 and R′″ is hydrogen or C 1 –C 5 alkyl, wherein the disease or disorder to be treated is hypertension, gastrointestinal disorders, tumors expressing CB2 receptors or autoimmune diseases and the pharmaceutical composition is administered to an individual in a therapeutically effective amount for treating the disease or disorder.