Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33592558›Full record

Trial reportDrug and alcohol dependence2021

Effect of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol on frontostriatal resting state functional connectivity and subjective euphoric response in healthy young adults.

Natania A Crane, K Luan Phan

Open access · greenAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Drug and alcohol dependence, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
1.6field-weighted citation impact, top 18% 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

6 citing papers in PubMed, 14 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. ΔBiological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging · 2026
    Trial
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Individual and combined effects of cannabidiol and ΔJournal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2022
    Article
  6. Review
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

2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Natania A CraneDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, United States. Electronic address: ncrane3@uic.edu.
K Luan PhanDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, The Ohio State University, United States.
University of Illinois Chicago · US

Funding

Strengthening Stakeholder Engagement in Human Research Protections.UL1TR002003 · NCATS · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO · PI KARNIK, NIRANJAN SUBHASH, MERMELSTEIN, ROBIN J. · 2016 to 2024
$33.7M
Training in the Neuroscience of Mental HealthT32MH067631 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO · PI RASENICK, MARK M. · 2004 to 2024
$4.8M
Brain-Behavior Markers of Reward and Cannabis Abuse Risk in Young AdultsK23DA048132 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO · PI CRANE, NATANIA A · 2020 to 2024
$954k
Cannabinoid Control of Fear Extinction Neural Circuits In HumansR21MH093917 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO · PI PHAN, K. LUAN · 2012 to 2013
$431k
NCATS NIH HHS UL1 TR002003NIDA NIH HHS K23 DA048132NIDA NIH HHS L30 DA049275NIMH NIH HHS R21 MH093917NIMH NIH HHS T32 MH067631
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundFew studies have examined how Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive component of cannabis, impacts brain reward circuitry in humans. In this study, we examined if an acute dose of THC altered resting state functional connectivity between the striatum and prefrontal cortex among healthy young adults with limited cannabis use.

methodsParticipants received THC (n = 24) or placebo (n = 22) in a double-blind, randomized, between-subject design. Participants completed self-report measures of euphoria and drug-liking throughout the visit. Approximately 120 min after drug administration, participants completed an 8-min resting state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) scan. We utilized seed-based connectivity of the striatum (bilateral putamen, caudate, and NAcc seeds) to the frontal cortex.

resultsIndividuals who received THC demonstrated greater rs-fMRI connectivity between the right NAcc and regions of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) (p-values<0.05, corrected) and higher subjective euphoria ratings (p = .03) compared to compared to individuals who received placebo. Higher ratings of euphoria were related to greater right NAcc-dorsal mPFC (dmPFC) connectivity for the THC group (p=.03), but not for the placebo group (p=.98).

conclusionsThis is one of the first studies to examine rs-fMRI connectivity in healthy young non-users after THC administration. We found individuals receiving THC show greater rs-fMRI connectivity between the NAcc and mPFC, regions implicated in reward, compared to individuals receiving placebo. In addition, individuals receiving THC reported higher subjective euphoria ratings, which were positively associated with NAcc-dmPFC connectivity. Overall, our findings suggest THC may produce subjective and neural reward responses that contribute to the rewarding, reinforcing properties of cannabis.

Indexed as

BrainBrain MappingCannabisCorpus StriatumDouble-Blind MethodDronabinolEmotionsEuphoriaFemaleFrontal LobeHallucinogensHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleMarijuana SmokingPrefrontal CortexDronabinolHallucinogensCannabisFMRIMarijuanaResting StateRewardTHC

Identifiers

PMID33592558
PMCPMC8026570
OpenAlexW3128919536

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
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.