Long-term effects of THC exposure on reward learning and motivated behavior in adolescent and adult male rats.
Briac Halbout, Collin Hutson, Leann Hua, Victoria C Inshishian, Stephen V Mahler, Sean B Ostlund
Psychopharmacology May 2023 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-023-06352-4 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Rats |
| Intervention | THC |
| Dose | 5 mg/kg/day for 14 days |
| Duration | 14-day treatment, with assessments following exposure |
| Topics | Addiction Cannabis |
| Keywords | Eating Emotion Goal-directed action Habit Motivation |
| Key findings | Repeated THC exposure had no effect on reward devaluation but enhanced contingency degradation learning in adult-exposed rats and increased progressive ratio responding, especially after adult exposure. Adolescent and adult exposure had opposing effects on CB1 receptor dependence, with adult exposure increasing sensitivity to rimonabant-induced behavioral suppression. |
Abstract
The endocannabinoid system makes critical contributions to reward processing, motivation, and behavioral control. Repeated exposure to THC or other cannabinoid drugs can cause persistent adaptions in the endocannabinoid system and associated neural circuitry. It remains unclear how such treatments affect the way rewards are processed and pursued. We examined if repeated THC exposure (5 mg/kg/day for 14 days) during adolescence or adulthood led to long-term changes in rats' capacity to flexibly encode and use action-outcome associations for goal-directed decision making. Effects on hedonic feeding and progressive ratio responding were also assessed. THC exposure had no effect on rats' ability to flexibly select actions following reward devaluation. However, instrumental contingency degradation learning, which involves avoiding an action that is unnecessary for reward delivery, was augmented in rats with a history of adult but not adolescent THC exposure. THC-exposed rats also displayed more vigorous instrumental behavior in this study, suggesting a motivational enhancement. A separate experiment found that while THC exposure had no effect on hedonic feeding behavior, it increased rats' willingness to work for food on a progressive ratio schedule, an effect that was more pronounced when THC was administered to adults. Adolescent and adult THC exposure had opposing effects on the CB1 receptor dependence of progressive ratio performance, decreasing and increasing sensitivity to rimonabant-induced behavioral suppression, respectively. Our findings reveal that exposure to a translationally relevant THC exposure regimen induces long-lasting, age-dependent alterations in cognitive and motivational processes that regulate the pursuit of rewards.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on cannabis for addiction, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 6
- Adolescent THC impacts on mPFC dopamine-mediated cognitive processes in male and female rats. Psychopharmacology February 1, 2025
- Adolescent-onset regular cannabis use is associated with altered neural and behavioural responses during anticipation and feedback of monetary reward and loss Psychopharmacology October 17, 2026
- Which Came First? Utility of Preclinical Models in Cracking the Chicken-or-Egg Relationship between Cannabis Use and Schizophrenia Current Addiction Reports February 27, 2026
- Long-term effects of adolescent THC exposure on anxiety-like behavior and cognitive function in male rats Psychopharmacology April 23, 2026
- Divergent outcomes of delta 9 - tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in adolescence on mesocortical dopamine and cognitive development in male and female mice. Psychopharmacology October 2025
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- Detrimental effects of adolescent escalating low-dose Δ9 -tetrahydrocannabinol leads to a specific bio-behavioural profile in adult male rats. British Journal of Pharmacology April 2021
- Escalating low-dose Δ9 -tetrahydrocannabinol exposure during adolescence induces differential behavioral and neurochemical effects in male and female adult rats. European Journal of Neuroscience July 2020
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