Effects of Sativex(Registered Trademark) and Oral THC on Attention, Affect, Working Memory, Reversal Learning, Physiology and Brain Activation

Summary

Background: * The therapeutic modalities of cannabis have received more research attention recently with the discovery of its ability to stimulate appetite and to provide pain and nausea relief in patients with AIDS, cancer, and multiple sclerosis, among other diseases. Sativex(Registered Trademark), an experimental drug derived from the marijuana plant, contains tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), both of which affect brain activity. Sativex(Registered Trademark) is being tested to determine how and to what extent it affects brain activity. * Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) uses magnetic waves to study brain activity. Researchers are interested in using fMRI to study how Sativex(Registered Trademark) affects regional brain activity, including thinking abilities and behavior. Objectives: * To study changes in regional brain activity produced by Sativex(Registered Trademark) compared with THC and placebo. * To determine how Sativex(Registered Trademark) is processed by the body. Eligibility: \- Individuals between 18 and 45 years of age who are either current users of cannabis (less than daily) or healthy volunteers who do not use cannabis. Design: * The study will involve one training session and five testing sessions on separate days. * At every session, subjects will receive either THC or placebo capsules and either Sativex(Registered Trademark) or placebo spray. * Participants will complete a training session in a mock fMRI scanner to adapt to the fMRI scanning environment. In the training session, participants will practice the tests that will track thinking ability, attention, working memory, and other cognitive tasks. * Participants will have five fMRI scanning sessions with the tests they have practiced previously, and will provide blood, urine, and saliva samples as required by the researchers. Participants will be discharged approximately 12 hours after they arrive for the study sessions....

Timeline

Start

2007-05-08

Primary completion

2011-08-15

Completion

2011-12-12

Publications

• Background Vega WA, Aguilar-Gaxiola S, Andrade L, Bijl R, Borges G, Caraveo-Anduaga JJ, DeWit DJ, Heeringa SG, Kessler RC, Kolody B, Merikangas KR, Molnar BE, Walters EE, Warner LA, Wittchen HU. Prevalence and age of onset for drug use in seven international sites: results from the international consortium of psychiatric epidemiology. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2002 Dec 1;68(3):285-97. doi: 10.1016/s0376-8716(02)00224-7.
• Background Huestis MA, Gorelick DA, Heishman SJ, Preston KL, Nelson RA, Moolchan ET, Frank RA. Blockade of effects of smoked marijuana by the CB1-selective cannabinoid receptor antagonist SR141716. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2001 Apr;58(4):322-8. doi: 10.1001/archpsyc.58.4.322.
• Background Voth EA, Schwartz RH. Medicinal applications of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and marijuana. Ann Intern Med. 1997 May 15;126(10):791-8. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-126-10-199705150-00008.

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