Researchers are investigating the impact of cannabis compounds on the brains of men with autism.
Researchers at King’s College London (KCL) believe the compounds could shift the balance between excitement and inhibition in the brain.
Dr Grainne McAlonan, who is researching the impact of the cannabis compounds cannabidiol and cannabidivarin on the human brain
Previous research suggests this balance can be disrupted in neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism.
No previous study has investigated this area, say the researchers in the Institute of Psychiatry at KCL.
Cannabis compounds vs placebo
The researchers investigated the brain’s response to a single dose of the cannabis compounds cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabidivarin (CBDV). They compared this to an inactive treatment, or placebo.
Thirty-eight men with and without autism took part in the trial.
CBD and CBDV are non-psychoactive substances in cannabis, or those parts that do not result in the ‘high’.
Interest in medicinal benefits
Dr Grainne McAlonan led the KCL research. She said there is growing interest in the medicinal benefits of “non-intoxicating” cannabis compounds. However, their impact was still largely unknown.
She said she and her colleagues wanted to “better understand” what the compounds do “in the living human brain”.
The research team used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) scans to investigate brain activity.
They also took questionnaires, task data, saliva, urine and blood samples. In addition, they conducted visual tasks using eye tracking and retina imaging.
Results due next April
They expect to complete the research, which a medicinal cannabis company is funding, next April.
In June, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the use of CBD-based medicine Epidiolex to treat two rare epilepsies. These were Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome.
And in the UK doctors will be able to prescribe cannabis-based medicine in the autumn. This change came about after home secretary Sajid Javid bowed to pressure from families campaigning for its use in epilepsy.
Related:
- Urgent review call for cannabis medicine
- US Army tests cannabis extract on autism
- World-first trial of cannabis for autism
- Drugs agency halts cannabis treatments
- Epilepsy may be treated with supplement
Published: 3 September 2018
