Submission Type

Poster

Start Date

4-26-2023

Abstract

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the primary psychoactive agent in marijuana, one of the most popular recreational drugs in the world. As the legalization trend in the U.S. expands, more women are consuming THC during pregnancy and more teens are experimenting with the drug. Unfortunately, the effects of THC on fetal and adolescent brain development are poorly understood. The current study was designed to identify the developmental and somatomotor effects of THC exposure. Long-Evans rats were assigned to one of two cohorts: prenatal exposure where pregnant rats were administered THC from gestational day 1 to postnatal day 21 or juvenile exposure where pups were directly administered THC from postnatal day 22-40. Preliminary results suggest that prenatal THC lowered bodyweight gain in pregnant rats and their offspring in a dose-related fashion. Prenatal THC delayed other milestones such as the crown-rump length and age of eye-opening. A four-part motor behavior battery consisting of grip strength, coordination, somatosensory reflex, and open field activity tests was conducted in young adult and middle-aged animals. Prenatal THC lowered grip strength and increased somatosensory reflex latency. The more robust effects observed in the prenatal cohort could be due to the increased THC and THC-COOH body burdens that emerged over the course of the exposure period in the pregnant dams.

Comments

Sponsored by Vincent Markowski

COinS
 
Apr 26th, 12:00 AM

126 - The Effects of Perinatal or Peripubertal Exposure to Tetrahydrocannabinol on Developmental Milestones, Motor Behavior, and Somatosensation in Rats

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the primary psychoactive agent in marijuana, one of the most popular recreational drugs in the world. As the legalization trend in the U.S. expands, more women are consuming THC during pregnancy and more teens are experimenting with the drug. Unfortunately, the effects of THC on fetal and adolescent brain development are poorly understood. The current study was designed to identify the developmental and somatomotor effects of THC exposure. Long-Evans rats were assigned to one of two cohorts: prenatal exposure where pregnant rats were administered THC from gestational day 1 to postnatal day 21 or juvenile exposure where pups were directly administered THC from postnatal day 22-40. Preliminary results suggest that prenatal THC lowered bodyweight gain in pregnant rats and their offspring in a dose-related fashion. Prenatal THC delayed other milestones such as the crown-rump length and age of eye-opening. A four-part motor behavior battery consisting of grip strength, coordination, somatosensory reflex, and open field activity tests was conducted in young adult and middle-aged animals. Prenatal THC lowered grip strength and increased somatosensory reflex latency. The more robust effects observed in the prenatal cohort could be due to the increased THC and THC-COOH body burdens that emerged over the course of the exposure period in the pregnant dams.

 

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