THE major active ingredient of marijuana, Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabi-nol (Δ⁹-THC), has been used as a psychoactive agent for thousands of years. Marijuana, and Δ⁹-THC, also exert a wide range of other effects including analgesia, anti-inflammation, immunosuppression, anticonvulsion, alleviation of intraocular pressure in glaucoma, and attenuation of vomiting¹. The clinical application of cannabinoids has, however, been limited by their psychoactive effects, and this has led to interest in the biochemical bases of their action. Progress stemmed initially from the synthesis of potent derivatives of δ⁹-THC^4,5, and more recently from the cloning of a gene encoding a G-protein-coupled receptor for cannabinoids⁶. This receptor is expressed in the brain but not in the periphery, except for a low level in testes. It has been proposed that the non-psychoactive effects of cannabinoids are either mediated centrally or through direct interaction with other, non-receptor proteins^1,7,8. Here we report the cloning of a receptor for cannabinoids that is not expressed in the brain but rather in macrophages in the marginal zone of spleen.