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Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory

INTRODUCTION: Alcohol and cannabis are widely used recreational drugs that can negatively impact fetal development, leading to cognitive impairments. However, these drugs may be used simultaneously and the effects of combined exposure during the prenatal period are not well understood. Thus, this st...

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Autores principales: Lei, Annie, Breit, Kristen R., Thomas, Jennifer D.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10293645/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37383100
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2023.1192786
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author Lei, Annie
Breit, Kristen R.
Thomas, Jennifer D.
author_facet Lei, Annie
Breit, Kristen R.
Thomas, Jennifer D.
author_sort Lei, Annie
collection PubMed
description INTRODUCTION: Alcohol and cannabis are widely used recreational drugs that can negatively impact fetal development, leading to cognitive impairments. However, these drugs may be used simultaneously and the effects of combined exposure during the prenatal period are not well understood. Thus, this study used an animal model to investigate the effects of prenatal exposure to ethanol (EtOH), Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), or the combination on spatial and working memory. METHODS: Pregnant Sprague–Dawley rats were exposed to vaporized ethanol (EtOH; 68 ml/h), THC (100 mg/ml), the combination, or vehicle control during gestational days 5–20. Adolescent male and female offspring were evaluated using the Morris water maze task to assess spatial and working memory. RESULTS: Prenatal THC exposure impaired spatial learning and memory in female offspring, whereas prenatal EtOH exposure impaired working memory. The combination of THC and EtOH did not exacerbate the effects of either EtOH or THC, although subjects exposed to the combination were less thigmotaxic, which might represent an increase in risk-taking behavior. DISCUSSION: Our results highlight the differential effects of prenatal exposure to THC and EtOH on cognitive and emotional development, with substance- and sex-specific patterns. These findings highlight the potential harm of THC and EtOH on fetal development and support public health policies aimed at reducing cannabis and alcohol use during pregnancy.
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spelling pubmed-102936452023-06-28 Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory Lei, Annie Breit, Kristen R. Thomas, Jennifer D. Front Neurosci Neuroscience INTRODUCTION: Alcohol and cannabis are widely used recreational drugs that can negatively impact fetal development, leading to cognitive impairments. However, these drugs may be used simultaneously and the effects of combined exposure during the prenatal period are not well understood. Thus, this study used an animal model to investigate the effects of prenatal exposure to ethanol (EtOH), Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), or the combination on spatial and working memory. METHODS: Pregnant Sprague–Dawley rats were exposed to vaporized ethanol (EtOH; 68 ml/h), THC (100 mg/ml), the combination, or vehicle control during gestational days 5–20. Adolescent male and female offspring were evaluated using the Morris water maze task to assess spatial and working memory. RESULTS: Prenatal THC exposure impaired spatial learning and memory in female offspring, whereas prenatal EtOH exposure impaired working memory. The combination of THC and EtOH did not exacerbate the effects of either EtOH or THC, although subjects exposed to the combination were less thigmotaxic, which might represent an increase in risk-taking behavior. DISCUSSION: Our results highlight the differential effects of prenatal exposure to THC and EtOH on cognitive and emotional development, with substance- and sex-specific patterns. These findings highlight the potential harm of THC and EtOH on fetal development and support public health policies aimed at reducing cannabis and alcohol use during pregnancy. Frontiers Media S.A. 2023-06-13 /pmc/articles/PMC10293645/ /pubmed/37383100 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2023.1192786 Text en Copyright © 2023 Lei, Breit and Thomas. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Neuroscience
Lei, Annie
Breit, Kristen R.
Thomas, Jennifer D.
Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory
title Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory
title_full Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory
title_fullStr Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory
title_full_unstemmed Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory
title_short Prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: Effects on spatial and working memory
title_sort prenatal alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol exposure: effects on spatial and working memory
topic Neuroscience
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10293645/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37383100
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2023.1192786
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