Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30758329›Full record

Trial reportNeuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology2019

Effects of cannabidiol on brain excitation and inhibition systems; a randomised placebo-controlled single dose trial during magnetic resonance spectroscopy in adults with and without autism spectrum disorder.

Charlotte Marie Pretzsch, Jan Freyberg, Bogdan Voinescu, David Lythgoe, Jamie Horder, Maria Andreina Mendez, Robert Wichers, Laura Ajram, Glynis Ivin, Martin Heasman and 5 more

Open access · hybridAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 75 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
75citing papers in PubMed, 6 pooled it
13.0field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

75 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 150 citations in OpenAlex.

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  9. The neural and psychophysiological effects of cannabidiol in youth with alcohol use disorder: A randomized controlled clinical trial.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2025
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15 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Charlotte Marie PretzschDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Jan FreybergDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Bogdan VoinescuDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0258-5917
David LythgoeDepartment of Neuroimaging Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Jamie HorderDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Maria Andreina MendezDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Robert WichersDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6630-8038
Laura AjramDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Glynis IvinSouth London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust Pharmacy, London, UK.
Martin HeasmanSouth London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust Pharmacy, London, UK.
Richard A E EddenRussel H Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Steven WilliamsDepartment of Neuroimaging Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Declan G M MurphyDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Eileen DalyDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Gráinne M McAlonanDepartment of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK. grainne.mcalonan@kcl.ac.uk.
King's College London · GBSouth London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust · GBJohns Hopkins University · US

Funding

Translational Neuroscience CoreU54HD079123 · NICHD · HUGO W. MOSER RES INST KENNEDY KRIEGER · PI JOHNSTON, MICHAEL VAN DOREN · 2014 to 2019
$7.9M
Somatosensory Inhibitory Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorder.R01MH106564 · NIMH · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · PI EDDEN, RICHARD ANTHONY EDWARD · 2016 to 2020
$2.5M
Medical Research Council MR/N026063/1NICHD NIH HHS U54 HD079123NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH106564
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

There is increasing interest in the use of cannabis and its major non-intoxicating component cannabidiol (CBD) as a treatment for mental health and neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, before launching large-scale clinical trials, a better understanding of the effects of CBD on brain would be desirable. Preclinical evidence suggests that one aspect of the polypharmacy of CBD is that it modulates brain excitatory glutamate and inhibitory γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels, including in brain regions linked to ASD, such as the basal ganglia (BG) and the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (DMPFC). However, differences in glutamate and GABA pathways in ASD mean that the response to CBD in people with and without ASD may be not be the same. To test whether CBD 'shifts' glutamate and GABA levels; and to examine potential differences in this response in ASD, we used magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to measure glutamate (Glx = glutamate + glutamine) and GABA+ (GABA + macromolecules) levels in 34 healthy men (17 neurotypicals, 17 ASD). Data acquisition commenced 2 h (peak plasma levels) after a single oral dose of 600 mg CBD or placebo. Test sessions were at least 13 days apart. Across groups, CBD increased subcortical, but decreased cortical, Glx. Across regions, CBD increased GABA+ in controls, but decreased GABA+ in ASD; the group difference in change in GABA + in the DMPFC was significant. Thus, CBD modulates glutamate-GABA systems, but prefrontal-GABA systems respond differently in ASD. Our results do not speak to the efficacy of CBD. Future studies should examine the effects of chronic administration on brain and behaviour, and whether acute brain changes predict longer-term response.

Indexed as

AdultAutism Spectrum DisorderBasal GangliaCannabidiolDouble-Blind Methodgamma-Aminobutyric AcidGlutamic AcidGray MatterHumansMagnetic Resonance SpectroscopyMalePrefrontal CortexWhite MatterYoung AdultCannabidiolgamma-Aminobutyric AcidGlutamic Acid

Identifiers

PMID30758329
PMCPMC6784992
OpenAlexW2912974605

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.