Skip to content

Acute induction of anxiety in humans by delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol related to amygdalar cannabinoid-1 (CB1) receptors.

Sagnik Bhattacharyya, Alice Egerton, Euitae Kim, Lula Rosso, Daniela Riano Barros, Alexander Hammers, Michael J Brammer, Federico Turkheimer, Oliver Howes, Philip Mcguire

Scientific Reports November 3, 2017 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-14203-4 (opens in new tab)

Read Full Text
Relevant Not relevant

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Randomized, placebo-controlled, within-subject neuroimaging study Peer reviewed
Sample size 14
Population Healthy adult males
Interventions Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC) placebo
Dose 10 mg
Duration Two fMRI sessions one month apart
Measures functional MRI (fMRI), positron emission tomography (PET) with [11C]MePPEP
Topics Anxiety Cannabis
Key points Delta-9-THC (10 mg oral) increased anxiety and altered right amygdala activation during fear processing relative to placebo in 14 healthy men. Both effects correlated positively with baseline CB1 receptor availability in the right amygdala, suggesting that the acute anxiety effects of cannabis in males are mediated by delta-9-THC modulation of amygdalar function and vary with local CB1 receptor availability.

Abstract

Use of Cannabis, the most widely used illicit drug worldwide, is associated with acute anxiety, and anxiety disorders following regular use. The precise neural and receptor basis of these effects have not been tested in man. Employing a combination of functional MRI (fMRI) and positron emission tomography (PET), we investigated whether the effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC), the main psychoactive ingredient of cannabis, on anxiety and on amygdala response while processing fearful stimuli were related to local availability of its main central molecular target, cannabinoid-1 (CB1) receptors in man. Fourteen healthy males were studied with fMRI twice, one month apart, following an oral dose of either delta-9-THC (10 mg) or placebo, while they performed a fear-processing task. Baseline availability of the CB1 receptor was studied using PET with [11C]MePPEP, a CB1 inverse agonist radioligand. Relative to the placebo condition, delta-9-THC induced anxiety and modulated right amygdala activation while processing fear. Both these effects were positively correlated with CB1 receptor availability in the right amygdala. These results suggest that the acute effects of cannabis on anxiety in males are mediated by the modulation of amygdalar function by delta-9-THC and the extent of these effects are related to local availability of CB1 receptors.

Comparable studies

Other randomized controlled trials on cannabis for anxiety, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Distinct Effects of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol on Neural Activation During Emotional Processing Healthy, English-native, right-handed men who had used cannabis 15 times or less in... 2009 Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial n = 15
Modulation of Mediotemporal and Ventrostriatal Function in Humans by Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Healthy, native English-speaking, right-handed men of white race/ethnicity who had used... 2009 Randomized controlled trial n = 15
Modulation of effective connectivity during emotional processing by Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol Healthy subjects 2009 Randomized controlled trial n = 15
Cannabis containing equivalent concentrations of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) induces less state anxiety than THC-dominant cannabis Healthy recreational cannabis users 2022 Randomized controlled trial, within-subjects n = 26
Psychedelic symptoms of cannabis and cocaine use as a function of trait impulsivity Regular drug users 2015 Three-way crossover study n = 122

Citations in the library

Cited by 16

and 11 more in the library

Cites 11

and 6 more in the library

Related reading

Explore topics

Anxiety Cannabis Addiction

By condition and practice

Cannabis for anxiety