Adolescent THC Treatment Does Not Potentiate the Behavioral Effects in Adulthood of Maternal Immune Activation.
Todd M Stollenwerk, Cecilia J. Hillard
Cells December 11, 2021 DOI: 10.3390/cells10123503 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Controlled experimental animal study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Mice prenatally exposed to poly(I:C) or vehicle and treated with THC or vehicle during adolescence, tested in adulthood |
| Intervention | Polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C)) |
| Dose | 3 mg/kg/day for 5 days |
| Measures | Morris water maze, fear extinction learning, amphetamine hyperlocomotion, prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle reflex |
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Keywords | Morris water maze Amphetamine hyperlocomotion Fear conditioning Polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid Prepulse inhibition Schizophrenia |
| Key findings | Adolescent THC exposure impaired spatial memory and enhanced spatial reversal learning in adult female mice, while prenatal poly(I:C) exposure produced female-specific deficits in fear extinction. Neither exposure altered amphetamine hyperlocomotion or prepulse inhibition, and no effects appeared in males. The authors report no evidence that adolescent THC synergized with maternal immune activation to worsen behavioral outcomes in either sex. |
Abstract
Both in utero exposure to maternal immune activation and cannabis use during adolescence have been associated with increased risk for the development of schizophrenia; however, whether these exposures exert synergistic effects on brain function is not known. In the present study, mild maternal immune activation (MIA) was elicited in mice with prenatal exposure to polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C)), and ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) was provided throughout adolescence in cereal (3 mg/kg/day for 5 days). Neither THC nor MIA pretreatments altered activity in assays used to characterize hyperdopaminergic states in adulthood: amphetamine hyperlocomotion and prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle reflex. Adolescent THC treatment elicited deficits in spatial memory and enhanced spatial reversal learning in adult female mice in the Morris water maze, while exposure to MIA elicited female-specific deficits in fear extinction learning in adulthood. There were no effects in these assays in adult males, nor were there interactions between THC and MIA in adult females. While doses of poly(I:C) and THC were sufficient to elicit behavioral effects, particularly relating to cognitive performance in females, there was no evidence that adolescent THC exposure synergized with the risk imposed by MIA to worsen behavioral outcomes in adult mice of either sex.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on cannabis, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
- 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
- Investigating the "two-hit hypothesis": Effects of prenatal maternal immune activation and adolescent cannabis use on neurodevelopment in mice. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry January 10, 2023
Cites 4
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- Sex differences in the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on spatial learning in adolescent and adult rats. Behavioural Pharmacology September 2007