Trajectory of adolescent cannabis use on addiction vulnerability.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Hurd YL
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3858398 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jan
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Trajectory of adolescent cannabis use on addiction vulnerability.
Hurd Yasmin L YL Michaelides Michael M Miller Michael L ML Jutras-Aswad Didier D
Neuropharmacology 20130814
The adolescent brain is a period of dynamic development making it vulnerable to environmental factors such as drug exposure. Of the illicit drugs, cannabis is most used by teenagers since it is perceived by many to be of little harm. This perception has led to a growing number of states approving its legalization and increased accessibility. Most of the debates and ensuing policies regarding cannabis were done without consideration of its impact on one of the most vulnerable population, namely t ...[more]
Similar Datasets
Project description:METHODS:Data are from an online survey of 482 adolescents (aged 15-19 years) living in states with legalized retail cannabis. Youth were asked about their engagement with cannabis promotions, including whether they liked/followed cannabis businesses on social media (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram), had a favorite cannabis brand, or could see themselves owning/wearing a cannabis-branded product. Youth also self-reported cannabis use in the past year. We used logistic regression with a Bonferroni correction to compare the odds of cannabis use among youth with different levels of engagement with cannabis promotions and brands after controlling for demographics. RESULTS:After adjusting for several possible confounders, youth who liked or followed a cannabis business on at least one social media platform had 5 times higher odds of past-year cannabis use (aOR = 5.00, 95% CI: 2.47, 10.09, p < 0.001). Youth who thought it was likely that they would own or wear cannabis-branded merchandise (aOR = 6.93, 95% CI: 4.45, 10.78, p < 0.001) or who had a favorite cannabis brand (aOR = 7.98, 95% CI: 4.90, 13.00, p < 0.001) had nearly 8 times greater odds of past-year cannabis use. CONCLUSION:Youth who engage with cannabis promotions and brands had higher odds of past-year cannabis use. Jurisdictions with retail cannabis may want to consider restrictions to limit youth engagement with cannabis promotions.
| S-EPMC6878135 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundIn 2013, Uruguay became the first country in the world to legalize recreational cannabis, instituting a non-commercial state regulatory model of production and supply. This study provides the first empirical evidence on its impacts on adolescent use of cannabis and related risks.MethodsWe use a generalization of the synthetic control method (SCM) to estimate the impact of legalization in Uruguay on adolescent past year and month cannabis use, perceived availability of cannabis and perceived risk of cannabis use. We compare biennial high school student self-reported survey data from Montevideo and regions in the interior of Uruguay post-legalization (2014-2018) and post initial implementation (2015-2018) to a synthetic counterfactual constructed using a weighted combination of 15 control regions in Chile.ResultsWe find no evidence of an impact on cannabis use or the perceived risk of use. We find an increase in student perception of cannabis availability (58% observed vs. 51% synthetic control) following legalization.ConclusionOur findings provide some support for the thesis that Uruguay's state regulatory approach to cannabis supply may minimize the impact of legalization on adolescent cannabis use. At the same time, our study period represents a period of transition: pharmacy access, by far the most popular means of access, was not available until the summer of 2017. Additional study will be important to assess the longer-term impacts of the fully implemented legalization regime on substance use outcomes.
| S-EPMC10686048 | biostudies-literature
Project description:AIMS:(1) To identify trajectories of cannabis use across adolescence, (2) to measure the influence of cannabis use characteristics on functional connectivity of the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) and (3) to assess whether patterns of functional connectivity related to cannabis use are associated with psychosocial functioning 2 years later. DESIGN:The Pitt Mother and Child Project (PMCP) is a prospective, longitudinal study of male youth at high risk for psychopathology based on family income and gender. SETTING:Participants were recruited between age 6 and 17 months from the Women, Infants and Children Nutritional Supplement program (WIC) in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area. PARTICIPANTS:A total of 158 PMCP young men contributed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and substance use data at age 20 years. MEASUREMENTS:Latent class growth analysis was used to determine trajectories of cannabis use frequency from age 14 to 19 years. Psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analysis was used to measure functional connectivity between the NAcc and prefrontal cortex (PFC). Adolescent cannabis use trajectory, recent frequency of use and age of initiation were considered as developmental factors. We also tested whether functional connectivity was associated with depressive symptoms, anhedonia and educational attainment at age 22. FINDINGS:We identified three distinct trajectories of adolescent cannabis use, characterized by stable high, escalating or stable low use. The cannabis use trajectory group had a significant effect on NAcc functional connectivity to the medial PFC (F = 11.32, Z = 4.04, Pfamily-wise error-corrected (FWE-corr) = 0.000). The escalating trajectory group displayed a pattern of negative NAcc-mPFC connectivity that was linked to higher levels of depressive symptoms (r = -0.17, P < .05), anhedonia (r = -0.19, P < .05) and lower educational attainment (t = -2.77, P < .01) at age 22. CONCLUSIONS:Pattern of cannabis use frequency across adolescence in US youth could have consequences for mood symptoms and educational attainment in early adulthood via altered function in neural reward circuitry.
| S-EPMC5633503 | biostudies-literature
Project description:AimsTo assess the associations between types of cannabis control policies at country level and prevalence of adolescent cannabis use.Setting, participants and designMultilevel logistic regressions were performed on 172,894 adolescents 15 year of age who participated in the 2001/2002, 2005/2006, or 2009/2010 cross-sectional Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) survey in 38 European and North American countries.MeasuresSelf-reported cannabis use status was classified into ever use in life time, use in past year, and regular use. Country-level cannabis control policies were categorized into a dichotomous measure (whether or not liberalized) as well as 4 detailed types (full prohibition, depenalization, decriminalization, and partial prohibition). Control variables included individual-level sociodemographic characteristics and country-level economic characteristics.FindingsConsiderable intra-class correlations (.15-.19) were found at country level. With respect to the dichotomized cannabis control policy, adolescents were more likely to ever use cannabis (odds ratio (OR) = 1.10, p = .001), use in past year (OR = 1.09, p = .007), and use regularly (OR = 1.26, p = .004). Although boys were substantially more likely to use cannabis, the correlation between cannabis liberalization and cannabis use was smaller in boys than in girls. With respect to detailed types of policies, depenalization was associated with higher odds of past-year use (OR = 1.14, p = .013) and regular use (OR = 1.23, p = .038), and partial prohibition was associated with higher odds of regular use (OR = 2.39, p = .016). The correlation between cannabis liberalization and regular use was only significant after the policy had been introduced for more than 5 years.ConclusionsCannabis liberalization with depenalization and partial prohibition policies was associated with higher levels of regular cannabis use among adolescents. The correlations were heterogeneous between genders and between short- and long-terms.
| S-EPMC4659554 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Classical genetic studies document strong complex genetic contributions to abuse of multiple addictive substances, to mnemonic processes that are likely to include those involved in substance dependence, and to the volumes of brain gray matter in regions that are likely to contribute to mnemonic/cognitive and to addictive processes. The working idea that these three heritable phenotypes are likely to share some of the same complex genetic underpinnings is presented. This review contains association-based molecular genetic studies of addiction that largely derive from my laboratory and their fit with linkage data from other laboratories. These combined results now identify many of the loci and genes that contain allelic variants that are likely to provide the heritable components of human addiction vulnerability. These data are also likely to have broad implications for neurotherapeutics. Drugs with potential abuse liabilities are widely used for indications that include pain, anxiety, sleep, seizure, and attentional disorders. There is increasing nonmedical use of these prescribed substances. Increasing information about addiction vulnerability gene variants should help to improve management of risks of dependence in individuals who receive such therapeutics. In addition, since mnemonic components that correlate well with individual differences in brain regional volumes are likely to play major roles in addiction processes, many addiction vulnerability genes are also good candidates to contribute to individual differences in mnemonic processes. Recently elucidation of addiction-associated haplotypes for the "cell adhesion" NrCAM gene illustrate several of these points.
| S-EPMC3593379 | biostudies-other
Project description:Marijuana use by teenagers often predates the use of harder drugs, but the neurobiological underpinnings of such vulnerability are unknown. Animal studies suggest enhanced heroin self-administration (SA) and dysregulation of the endogenous opioid system in the nucleus accumbens shell (NAcsh) of adults following adolescent ?(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) exposure. However, a causal link between proenkephalin (Penk) expression and vulnerability to heroin has yet to be established.To investigate the functional significance of NAcsh Penk tone, selective viral-mediated knockdown and overexpression of Penk was performed, followed by analysis of subsequent heroin SA behavior. To determine whether adolescent THC exposure was associated with chromatin alteration, we analyzed levels of histone H3 methylation in the NAcsh via chromatin immunoprecipitation at five sites flanking the Penk gene transcription start site.Here we show that regulation of the Penk opioid neuropeptide gene in NAcsh directly regulates heroin SA behavior. Selective viral-mediated knockdown of Penk in striatopallidal neurons attenuates heroin SA in adolescent THC-exposed rats, whereas Penk overexpression potentiates heroin SA in THC-naïve rats. Furthermore, we report that adolescent THC exposure mediates Penk upregulation through reduction of histone H3 lysine 9 (H3K9) methylation in the NAcsh, thereby disrupting the normal developmental pattern of H3K9 methylation.These data establish a direct association between THC-induced NAcsh Penk upregulation and heroin SA and indicate that epigenetic dysregulation of Penk underlies the long-term effects of THC.
| S-EPMC3440551 | biostudies-literature
Project description:UnlabelledCannabis can produce and/or exacerbate psychotic symptoms in vulnerable individuals. Early exposure to cannabis, particularly in combination with genetic factors, increases the risk of a subsequent, primary, psychotic disorder. Because paranoia is a common feature of stimulant abuse and cocaine-dependent individuals frequently endorse a history of cannabis abuse, we examined whether early cannabis exposure, in conjunction with polymorphic variation in the catechol-O-methyl transferase gene (COMT Val158Met), influences the risk for cocaine-induced paranoia (CIP).MethodsCannabis-use history was obtained in 1140 cocaine-dependent individuals from a family-based (affected sibling pair) study using the Semi-Structured Assessment for Drug Dependence and Alcoholism (SSADDA). Logistic regression and generalized estimating equations' analyses were used to examine the role of adolescent-onset cannabis use (< or =15 years of age) on CIP risk, both controlling for previously implicated CIP risk factors and familial relationships, and considering potential interactions with COMT Val158Met genotype.ResultsCocaine-dependent individuals who endorsed CIP had significantly higher rates of adolescent-onset cannabis use than those without CIP (62.2% vs. 50.2%; chi(2)=15.2, df=1, p<0.0001), a finding that remained after controlling for sibling correlations and other risk factors. There were no effects of COMT genotype or genotype by early cannabis onset interactions. A modest (OR=1.4) and nearly significant (p=0.053) effect of CIP status in probands on CIP status in siblings was also noted.ConclusionsAdolescent-onset cannabis use increases the risk of CIP in cocaine-dependent individuals. COMT genotype and its interaction with early cannabis exposure did not emerge as significant predictors of CIP. In addition, trait vulnerability to CIP may also be familial in nature.
| S-EPMC2821949 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Associations between cannabis use and psychotic disorders suggest that cannabis may be a contributory risk factor in the neurobiology of psychosis. In this study, we examined brain structure characteristics, total and regional gray matter density (GMD), using Voxel Based Morphometry, in psychotic individuals, stratified by history of cannabis use (total n?=?109). We also contrasted GMD estimates in individual diagnostic groups (schizophrenia/bipolar I disorder) with and without history of adolescent cannabis use (ACU). Individuals with psychosis as a whole, both with and without history of ACU, had lower total and regional GMD, compared to healthy controls. ACU was associated with attenuated GMD reductions, compared to non-users, especially in the schizophrenia cases, who showed robust GMD reductions in fronto-temporal and parietal cortex, as well as subcortical regions. Notably, total and regional GMD estimates in individuals with psychosis and ACU were not different from controls with no ACU. These data indicate that the history of ACU in psychotic individuals is associated with attenuated GMD abnormalities. Future investigations targeting potential unique etiological and risk factors associated with psychosis in individuals with ACU may help in understanding of the neurobiology of psychotic disorders and novel treatment options for these individuals.
| S-EPMC5959798 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background and aimsSubstance use has been implicated in the onset and maintenance of risky sexual behaviors, which have particularly devastating consequences in young women. This study examined whether (i) adolescent onset of cannabis use is associated with repeated voluntary unprotected sex in women and (ii) whether this association persists after accounting for correlated familial influences.DesignGeneral population sample of female twins.SettingMidwestern United States.ParticipantsA total of 2784 sexually active twin women (15.5% African American) aged 18-27 years (assessed 2002-05), including 119 dizygotic (DZ) and 115 monozygotic (MZ) discordant pairs.MeasurementsSelf-report interview data on cannabis use that first occurred prior to age 17 (27.1%) and repeated voluntary unprotected sex (27.2%). Key covariates included early onset of regular drinking, regular smoking, sexual debut and menstruation as well as conduct disorder symptoms and childhood sexual abuse.FindingsCompared with never users and those who started using cannabis at a later age, adolescent cannabis users were more likely to report repeated voluntary unprotected sex [odds ratio (OR) = 2.69; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.24-3.22]. Genetic (rg = 0.57, 95% CI = 0.38-0.87) and non-shared environmental (re = 0.21, 95% CI = 0.02-0.38) factors contributed to the association. After accounting for correlated familial factors, there was a consistent elevation in the likelihood of repeated voluntary unprotected sex in the exposed twin relative to her genetically identical never/late-onset user co-twin (unadjusted OR = 2.25, 95% CI = 1.14-4.44), even after adjustment for covariates (adjusted OR = 2.27, 95% CI = 1.08-4.80).ConclusionsWomen who start using cannabis during adolescence appear to be more likely to report voluntary engagement in repeated unprotected sex than women who never use cannabis or who initiate cannabis use after adolescence. The results appear to be independent of shared genetic influences.
| S-EPMC5056799 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Obesity has become a major public health concern worldwide due to its high social and economic burden, caused by its related comorbidities, impacting physical and mental health. Dietary fat is an important source of energy along with its rewarding and reinforcing properties. The nutritional recommendations for dietary fat vary from one country to another; however, the dietary reference intake (DRI) recommends not consuming more than 35% of total calories as fat. Food rich in fat is hyperpalatable, and is liable to be consumed in excess amounts. Food addiction as a concept has gained traction in recent years, as some aspects of addiction have been demonstrated for certain varieties of food. Fat addiction can be a diagnosable condition, which has similarities with the construct of addictive disorders, and is distinct from eating disorders or normal eating behaviors. Psychological vulnerabilities like attentional biases have been identified in individuals described to be having such addiction. Animal models have provided an opportunity to explore this concept in an experimental setting. This discussion sheds light on fat addiction, and explores its physiological and psychological implications. The discussion attempts to collate the emerging literature on addiction to fat rich diets as a prominent subset of food addiction. It aims at addressing the clinical relevance at the community level, the psychological correlates of such fat addiction, and the current physiological research directions.
| S-EPMC6893421 | biostudies-literature