Journal of cannabis research
May 31, 2024
S Zhao, B Brands, P Kaduri et al.
13 citations
Cannabis edibles impair driving less than smoked cannabis, despite causing intoxication. After consuming an average of 7.3 mg of THC, participants drove slower 2 hours later but showed no significant weaving, speed changes, or reaction time differences under standard or dual-task conditions. Blood THC levels peaked at about 2.8 ng/mL, lower than after smoking, and were not correlated with driving impairment. Subjective intoxication lasted up to 7 hours, and participants felt less able to drive for up to 6 hours. Detecting driving impairment from edibles may be difficult because blood THC levels are low and not linked to performance deficits.
Journal of cannabis research
January 2, 2026
Sunitha Vemuri, Samantha M Ayoub, Arpi Minassian et al.
Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive component of cannabis, reduced pain sensitivity, body temperature, and movement in HIV-1 transgenic rats and their controls, with some differences between males and females. A higher dose (3 mg/kg) also temporarily lowered motivation to work for a reward, but this effect disappeared after 16 days of daily treatment. HIV-1 transgenic rats showed lower motivation than one control strain (Fischer344) but not another (wildtype littermates), highlighting the importance of choosing appropriate control groups in research.
Journal of cannabis research
May 31, 2025
Michael Von Gunten, Seth Hoffman, Addison Smartt et al.
In mice, three days of THC exposure eliminates a specific form of synaptic plasticity—CB1-dependent long-term depression (LTD)—in GABA neurons of the ventral tegmental area (VTA) in young but not adult animals. This age-dependent effect may help explain why adolescents are more sensitive to THC-induced changes in brain reward circuits. Quantitative PCR showed no THC-induced changes in mRNA levels for either age group, though several differences existed between young and adult control mice.