Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:
It has been proposed that medicinal strains of cannabis and therapeutic preparations would be safer with a more balanced concentration ratio of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) to cannabidiol (CBD), as CBD reduces the adverse psychotropic effects of THC. However, our understanding of CBD and THC interactions is limited and the brain circuitry mediating interactions between CBD and THC are unknown. The aim of this study is to investigate whether CBD modulates THC-induced functional effects and c-Fos expression in a 1:1 dose ratio that approximates therapeutic strains of cannabis and nabiximols.
EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH:
Male C57BL/6 mice were treated with vehicle, CBD, THC, or a combination of CBD and THC (10 mg.kg-1 i.p. for both cannabinoids) to examine effects on locomotor activity, anxiety-related behaviour, body temperature, and brain c-Fos expression (a marker of neuronal activation).
KEY RESULTS:
CBD potentiated THC-induced locomotor suppression but reduced the hypothermic and anxiogenic effects of THC. CBD alone had no effect on these measures. THC increased brain activation as measured by c-Fos expression in 11 of the 35 brain regions studied; CBD co-administration suppressed THC-induced c-Fos expression in 6 of these brains regions. This effect was most pronounced in the medial preoptic nucleus and lateral PAG. CBD alone treatment diminished c-Fos expression only in the central nucleus of the amygdala compared to vehicle.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS:
These data re-affirm that CBD modulates the pharmacological actions of THC and provide information regarding brain regions involved in the interaction between CBD and THC.
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- PMID:
- 26377899
- [PubMed – as supplied by publisher]
