Skip to main content
Canna~Fangled Abstracts

Cannabidiol has a unique effect on global brain activity: a pharmacological, functional MRI study in awake mice

By May 24, 2021May 25th, 2021No Comments
. 2021 May 24;19(1):220.

doi: 10.1186/s12967-021-02891-6.

Aymen H Sadaka 1, Ana G Ozuna 1, Richard J Ortiz 2, Praveen Kulkarni 1, Clare T Johnson 3, Heather B Bradshaw 3, Bruce S Cushing 2, Ai-Ling Li 3, Andrea G Hohmann 3 4, Craig F Ferris 5 6 7
Affiliations 

Abstract

Background: The phytocannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) exhibits anxiolytic activity and has been promoted as a potential treatment for post-traumatic stress disorders. How does CBD interact with the brain to alter behavior? We hypothesized that CBD would produce a dose-dependent reduction in brain activity and functional coupling in neural circuitry associated with fear and defense.

Methods: During the scanning session awake mice were given vehicle or CBD (3, 10, or 30 mg/kg I.P.) and imaged for 10 min post treatment. Mice were also treated with the 10 mg/kg dose of CBD and imaged 1 h later for resting state BOLD functional connectivity (rsFC). Imaging data were registered to a 3D MRI mouse atlas providing site-specific information on 138 different brain areas. Blood samples were collected for CBD measurements.

Results: CBD produced a dose-dependent polarization of activation along the rostral-caudal axis of the brain. The olfactory bulb and prefrontal cortex showed an increase in positive BOLD whereas the brainstem and cerebellum showed a decrease in BOLD signal. This negative BOLD affected many areas connected to the ascending reticular activating system (ARAS). The ARAS was decoupled to much of the brain but was hyperconnected to the olfactory system and prefrontal cortex.

Conclusion: The CBD-induced decrease in ARAS activity is consistent with an emerging literature suggesting that CBD reduces autonomic arousal under conditions of emotional and physical stress.

 

Keywords: Behavioral arrest, N-acyl-phosphatidylethanolamines-specific phospholipase D, Negative BOLD, Olfaction, PTSD, Reticular activating system, Tonic immobility

References

    1. Lee JLC, Bertoglio LJ, Guimaraes FS, Stevenson CW. Cannabidiol regulation of emotion and emotional memory processing: relevance for treating anxiety-related and substance abuse disorders. Br J Pharmacol. 2017;174:3242–56. https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.13724.PMC5595771 . – DOI – PubMed – PMC
    1. Wright M, Di Ciano P, Brands B. Use of cannabidiol for the treatment of anxiety: a short synthesis of pre-clinical and clinical evidence. Cannabis Cannabinoid Res. 2020;5:191–6. https://doi.org/10.1089/can.2019.0052.PMC7480724 . – DOI – PubMed
    1. Poleg S, Golubchik P, Offen D, Weizman A. Cannabidiol as a suggested candidate for treatment of autism spectrum disorder. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2019;89:90–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnpbp.2018.08.030 . – DOI – PubMed
    1. Davies C, Bhattacharyya S. Cannabidiol as a potential treatment for psychosis. Ther Adv Psychopharmacol. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/2045125319881916.PMC6843725 . – DOI – PubMed – PMC
    1. Hindocha C, Cousijn J, Rall M, Bloomfield MAP. The effectiveness of cannabinoids in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD): a systematic review. J Dual Diagn. 2020;16:120–39. https://doi.org/10.1080/15504263.2019.1652380 . – DOI – PubMed

Leave a Reply