Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40838351›Full record

ArticleJournal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England)2026

Acute cannabidiol (CBD), tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and their mixture (THC:CBD) exert differential effects on brain activity and blood flow in rats: A translational neuroimaging study.

Eilidh MacNicol, Michelle Kokkinou, Maria Elisa Serrano Navacerrada, Donna-Michelle Smith, Jennifer Li, Camilla Simmons, Eugene Kim, Michel Mesquita, Loreto Rojo Gonzalez, Tierney Andrews and 8 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
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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

18 authors.

Eilidh MacNicolDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-3715-7012
Michelle KokkinouJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Maria Elisa Serrano NavacerradaDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Donna-Michelle SmithJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Jennifer LiJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Camilla SimmonsDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Eugene KimDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Michel MesquitaDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Loreto Rojo GonzalezDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Tierney AndrewsDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
Sally LoomisJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Royston A GrayJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Volker KnappertzDepartment of Neurology and Psychiatry, Heinrich-Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Benjamin J WhalleyJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Andrew C McCrearyJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Steven Cr WilliamsDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
David VirleyJazz Pharmaceuticals Research UK Ltd., Cambridge, UK.
Diana CashDepartment of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-5021-1234

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCannabis constituents, including Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), show distinct pharmacological profiles with therapeutic relevance for neurological and psychiatric conditions. THC exerts euphoric effects primarily via CB1 receptor activation, while CBD displays non-euphoric properties affecting various pathways.

aimsThis study evaluated the effects of THC, CBD, and their combination on brain functional connectivity (FC) and cerebral blood flow (CBF) using multimodal neuroimaging.

methodsAdult male Sprague Dawley rats received intraperitoneal doses of 10 mg/kg THC, 150 mg/kg CBD, 10.8:10 mg/kg THC:CBD, or vehicle. Resting-state blood oxygenation level dependent magnetic resonance imaging and arterial spin labelling assessed FC and CBF, approximately 2 h after drug administration. Graph-theory metrics and seed-based analyses identified connectivity and perfusion alterations, while plasma analyses determined cannabinoid concentrations.

resultsTHC increased whole-brain FC and clustering coefficient, with elevated CBF in cortical and subcortical regions. CBD decreased FC metrics without affecting CBF, while THC:CBD induced moderate increases in both. Seed-based analysis revealed THC-driven increases in cortical-hippocampal and cortical-striatal connectivity, attenuated in the THC:CBD group. A multivariate combined analysis of FC and CBF revealed a divergent pattern of changes induced by each drug.

conclusionsIn conclusion, we show that THC and CBD induce distinct neurophysiological profiles in rats, with THC increasing both connectivity and perfusion, moderated by CBD when combined. These findings corroborate existing knowledge about the effects of cannabinoids on the brain, while also supporting the potential of preclinical functional neuroimaging to delineate cannabinoid-induced endophenotypes, offering insights for therapeutic development.

Indexed as

BrainCannabidiolCerebrovascular CirculationDronabinolAnimalsDose-Response Relationship, DrugMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleNeuroimagingRatsRats, Sprague-DawleyCannabidiolDronabinolCannabinoidscerebral blood flowneuroimagingratresting state fMRI

Identifiers

PMID40838351
PMCPMC13242542

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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.