An extensive exploration of the structure–activity relationship of a trisubstituted sulfonamide series led to the identification of 39, which is a potent and selective CB2 receptor inverse agonist [K i (CB2)= 5.4 nM, and K i (CB1)= 500 nM]. The functional properties measured by cAMP assays indicated that the selected compounds were CB2 inverse agonists with high potency values (for 34, EC50= 8.2 nM, and for 39, EC50= 2.5 nM). Furthermore, an ...