Selective effects of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol on medium spiny neurons in the striatum.
Mónica R Fernández-Cabrera, Alejandro Higuera-Matas, Isabel Fernaud-Espinosa, Javier DeFelipe, Emilio Ambrosio, Miguel Miguéns
PLoS One 2018 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0200950 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental animal study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Adult male C57BL6/J mice |
| Intervention | THC |
| Dose | 10mg/kg |
| Duration | 15 days of treatment followed by a 7-day drug-free period |
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Key findings | Prolonged THC administration increased dendritic spine density in the distal dendrites of medium spiny neurons in the posterior dorsomedial striatum, with no changes in other parameters or in the anterior dorsolateral striatum. Spines in the posterior dorsomedial striatum had lower volume and surface area than those in the anterior dorsolateral striatum. The authors suggest THC may induce structural plasticity alterations in circuits involving these neurons. |
Abstract
Derivatives from the Cannabis plant are the most commonly abused illegal substances in the world. The main psychoactive component found in the plant, Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), exerts its effects through the endocannabinoid system. Manipulations of this system affect some types of learning that seem to be dependent on dorsal striatum synaptic plasticity. Dendritic spines exhibit important synaptic functional attributes and a potential for plasticity, which is thought to mediate long-lasting changes in behaviour. To study the possible structural plasticity changes that prolonged THC administration might exert in the dorsal striatum, adult, male C57BL6/J mice were intraperitoneally injected with THC (10mg/kg) or vehicle for 15 days followed by a 7-day drug-free period. Using single cell intracellular injections of Lucifer Yellow, confocal microscopy, and 3D reconstruction of labelled neurons, we studied dendritic spine density and spine size in medium spiny neurons (MSNs) of the anterior dorsolateral striatum (aDLS) and posterior dorsomedial striatum (pDMS). We found that the THC treatment increased dendritic spine density in the distal part of the dendrites of MSNs in the pDMS, but no changes were found in the rest of the parameters analysed in either region studied. We also observed that dendritic spines of MSNs of pDMS presented lower volume and surface area values than MSNs of the aDLS. These results seem to indicate that THC could induce structural plasticity alterations in the circuits involving pDMS MSNs.
Comparable studies
Other preclinical and animal studies on cannabis, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
- Impairment of Synaptic Plasticity by Cannabis, Δ9-THC, and Synthetic Cannabinoids. Cold Spring Harbor perspectives in medicine May 3, 2021
- Cannabis points to the synaptic pathology of mental disorders: how aberrant synaptic components disrupt the highest psychological functions . Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience September 2020
Cites 6
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