Behavioral aspects of voluntary oral administration of different doses of Cannabis sativa extract in Wistar rats

• Grant number: 23/06414-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2023
• End date: December 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Carlos Eduardo Neves Girardi
• Grantee: Maria Luiza Motta Pollo
• Host Institution: Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Cannabis is a genus of plants in the Cannabaceae family, of which the Cannabis sativa (C. sativa) species is the most used and applied in basic research. Its therapeutic and recreational use is not recent; however, only after the determination of its main components, ”9-THC and CBD, it was possible to understand the interactions between Cannabis and the physiology of mammals and, more specifically, of humans. In regards to cannabinoid pharmacokinetics, the routes of administration and absorption are diverse and vary according to the type of product and the purpose of use; in the case of therapeutic use, voluntary oral administration is the main and most effective. However, its application in animal models, especially non-pathological ones, is poorly described. Simultaneously, the divergence between the effect of isolated compounds (both from the plant and synthetic) and the synergistic effect between various plant components, known as the Entourage effect, still presents itself as a topic of debate, despite the fact that the inter-regulatory capabilities of C. sativa compounds have already been demonstrated as important. Since C. sativa is widely associated with its psychotropic abilities, the observation of its effects in the behavioral sphere becomes inevitable; however, the divergence of effects according to the route of administration raises the need for specific studies that relate both variables. The present project aims to: (I) standardize the protocol for voluntary oral administration of C. sativa extract in healthy male Wistar rats and (II) describe possible effects of this route of administration on the behavioral parameters of male Wistar rats.