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Sex differences in the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on spatial learning in adolescent and adult rats.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Cha, YM; Jones, KH; Kuhn, CM; Wilson, WA; Swartzwelder, HS
Published in: Behav Pharmacol
September 2007

Like other recreational drugs, cannabinoids may produce different effects in men and women. In this study we measured the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on spatial learning in two groups that are underrepresented in drug research--females and adolescents. In the first experiment, adolescent (postnatal day 30) and adult (postnatal day 70) rats of both sexes were treated subchronically with 5.0 mg/kg THC or vehicle for five consecutive days. Thirty minutes after each daily injection, they were tested on the spatial version of the Morris water maze task. In the second experiment, a separate group of adolescent and adult rats of both sexes was treated with 5.0 mg/kg THC or vehicle daily for 21 days and tested, 4 weeks later, on the spatial version of the water maze. Subchronic THC impaired spatial learning, and this effect was dependent upon both the age and sex of the animals tested. Prior exposure to chronic THC, however, did not cause any long-lasting spatial learning deficits. On the basis of our previous studies in male rats the third experiment assessed the dose-response relationship for the effects of THC on spatial learning and memory in female animals. We found that subchronic THC treatment (2.5, 5.0, or 10.0 mg/kg, intraperitoneally) disrupted learning in both adolescents and adults, but with greater effects at higher doses in adolescents compared with adults. The developmental sensitivity to subchronic THC confirms previous work carried out in our laboratory, and the sex-dependent effects highlight the importance of including females in drug abuse and addiction research.

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Published In

Behav Pharmacol

DOI

ISSN

0955-8810

Publication Date

September 2007

Volume

18

Issue

5-6

Start / End Page

563 / 569

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Spatial Behavior
  • Sex Factors
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Rats
  • Random Allocation
  • Psychotropic Drugs
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Memory
  • Maze Learning
  • Male
 

Citation

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Cha, Y. M., Jones, K. H., Kuhn, C. M., Wilson, W. A., & Swartzwelder, H. S. (2007). Sex differences in the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on spatial learning in adolescent and adult rats. Behav Pharmacol, 18(5–6), 563–569. https://doi.org/10.1097/FBP.0b013e3282ee7b7e
Cha, Young May, Katherine H. Jones, Cynthia M. Kuhn, Wilkie A. Wilson, and Harry Scott Swartzwelder. “Sex differences in the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on spatial learning in adolescent and adult rats.Behav Pharmacol 18, no. 5–6 (September 2007): 563–69. https://doi.org/10.1097/FBP.0b013e3282ee7b7e.
Cha YM, Jones KH, Kuhn CM, Wilson WA, Swartzwelder HS. Sex differences in the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on spatial learning in adolescent and adult rats. Behav Pharmacol. 2007 Sep;18(5–6):563–9.
Cha, Young May, et al. “Sex differences in the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on spatial learning in adolescent and adult rats.Behav Pharmacol, vol. 18, no. 5–6, Sept. 2007, pp. 563–69. Pubmed, doi:10.1097/FBP.0b013e3282ee7b7e.
Cha YM, Jones KH, Kuhn CM, Wilson WA, Swartzwelder HS. Sex differences in the effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on spatial learning in adolescent and adult rats. Behav Pharmacol. 2007 Sep;18(5–6):563–569.

Published In

Behav Pharmacol

DOI

ISSN

0955-8810

Publication Date

September 2007

Volume

18

Issue

5-6

Start / End Page

563 / 569

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Spatial Behavior
  • Sex Factors
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Rats
  • Random Allocation
  • Psychotropic Drugs
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Memory
  • Maze Learning
  • Male