Abstract Background The use of cannabis for treating fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) has not been comprehensively investigated. Thus, we have assessed the efficacy and adverse events (AEs) of short- and long-term medical cannabis (MC) treatment for FMS. Methods Data were obtained from medical reports archived in the pain clinic of Ponderano (Italy; retrospective study). FMS patients, who were resistant to conventional therapy, received licensed MC with various Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) content, as powdered whole flowers (decoction or vaporization) or oil extracts. Demographic and clinical parameters, including Numerical Rating Scale (NRS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Widespread Pain Index (WPI),...

Please use this link to access this publication. Abstract Background: Despite tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)’s reputation for creating dramatic effects at high doses, empirical work rarely addresses cannabis’s impact on subjective responses common to the tryptamine psychedelics. We focused on these effects because they have preceded and covaried with the therapeutic impact of psilocybin in previous work. Aims: The current study examined if self-reported responses to cannabis products might parallel those found in clinical trials of psilocybin administration. We also investigated if measures of demographics and cannabis use might correlate with these responses. Methods: Participants reported the subjective effect of their highest THC experience using 27...

Please use this link to access this publication. Abstract Background: THC and CBD are the principal phyto-cannabinoids in the cannabis plant. The differential and possibly antagonistic effects of these compounds on specific brain and behavioral responses, and the mechanisms underlying their effects have generated extensive interest in pre-clinical and clinical neuroscience investigations. Methods: In this double-blind randomized placebo-controlled counterbalanced Human Laboratory Study, we examined the effects of three different dose ratios of CBD:THC (1:1, 2:1, and 3:1) on "neural noise," an electrophysiological biomarker of psychosis known to be sensitive to cannabinoids as well as subjective and psychotomimetic effects. Healthy volunteers (n=28, 12 women) with at least one...

Abstract Aim: Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) is a potentially addictive cannabinoid. Its impact on the activity of liver arylamine N-Acetyltransferase (NAT) has not been reported. This study investigated the rewarding effects of Δ9-THC in mice and whether Δ9-THC had any impact ex-vivo and in-vitro on NAT activity. Methods: Thirty-six Swiss albinomice randomly assigned to six groups (n = 6) completed a biased, 8-week Conditioned Place Preference (CPP) paradigm. Mice exhibiting ~80% preference for the black chamber at pre-conditioning were selected. Treatment groups were administered Δ9-THC (0.10, 0.50 or 2.0 mg/kg/mL, ip) or amphetamine (AMP, 5.0 mg/kg/mL, ip); while untreated groups (controls) received vehicle solutions (coconut oil or 0.9% saline). Entries and time spent in the...

  Abstract INTRODUCTION: In recent years, cannabinoids have been shown to have beneficial effects on diabetic vascular complications. Vascular complications due to fructose-induced hyperinsulinemia (HI) and diabetic vascular complications have similar mechanisms. The aim of this experimental study was to observe whether the cannabinoid agonist delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) has an ameliorating effect on fructose-induced HI and vascular responses in the aortic ring of rats with HI. METHODS: A total of 24 rats were categorized into 4 groups: control (standard food pellets and water), HI (water containing 10% fructose provided for 12 weeks), THC (1.5 mg/kg/day intraperitoneal administration for 4 weeks), and THC+HI. Body weight was...

Please use this link to access this publication. Abstract Cannabinoids produce both rewarding and aversive effects in humans and experimental animals. However, the mechanisms underlying these conflicting findings are unclear. Here we examined the potential involvement of CB1 and CB2 receptors in cannabinoid action using transgenic CB1-knockout (CB1-KO) and CB2-knockout (CB2-KO) mice. We found that Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) induced conditioned place preference at a low dose (1 mg/kg) in WT mice that was attenuated by deletion of the CB1 receptor. At 5 mg/kg, no subjective effects of Δ9-THC were detected in WT mice, but CB1-KO mice exhibited a trend towards place aversion and CB2-KO mice developed significant place preferences. This data suggests that activation of the CB1 receptor...

Please use this link to access this publication. Abstract Marijuana is widely used among adolescents, particularly in those with mood and anxiety symptoms. Though inflammation is hypothesized to play a role in the development of mood disorders, it remains unclear how tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) affects cytokine levels. Previous studies report conflicting results on the relationship between marijuana use and inflammation in adolescents. Therefore, we aimed to examine whether depressed adolescents who use THC would exhibit increased inflammation (indexed at baseline and in response to Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)) compared to those who do not.

Abstract Cannabis is widely used for both recreational and medicinal purposes on a global scale. There is accumulating interest in the use of cannabis and its constituents for athletic recovery, and in some instances, performance. Amidst speculation of potential beneficial applications, the effects of cannabis and its two most abundant constituents, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), remain largely un-investigated. The purpose of this review is to critically evaluate the literature describing the effects of whole cannabis, THC, and CBD, on athletic performance and recovery. While investigations of whole cannabis and THC have generally shown either null or detrimental effects on exercise performance in strength...

Please use this link to access this publication. Abstract Background An innovative naturalistic at-home administration procedure was used to investigate sex differences in subjective drug effects and verbal memory errors after ad libitum use of high potency state legal market Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) concentrate. Methods Regular concentrate users were randomly assigned to ad libitum administration of one of two cannabis concentrate products (70 % or 90 % THC) that they purchased from a dispensary. 65 participants (N = 34 men, N = 31 women) were assessed in a mobile pharmacology lab before, immediately after, and 1 -h after ad libitum concentrate use. Plasma cannabinoids (THC, 11-OH-THC, CBD), subjective drug effects, and verbal memory errors were assessed...

Please use this link to access this publication. Abstract The effects of marijuana's major psychoactive cannabinoid, ∆9-tetrahydrocannibinol (∆9-THC), were examined on memory in female rats by training subjects to respond under a repeated acquisition and delayed-performance procedure. During this task, subjects acquired a different 4-response sequence each session, which was then recalled after a delay. Sequence retention was tested following various delays, and quantified by a percent savings measure. Response rate and percent errors were also recorded. Subsequent to training, subjects underwent an ovariectomy (OVX) or sham surgery (intact). The OVX group then underwent implantation of subcutaneous 17β-estradiol capsules while the intact group received chronic administration of 1 mg/kg of the estrogen receptor modifier, tamoxifen....