|
veggie

Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 17,538
|
Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine
#13457045 - 11/09/10 12:16 AM (13 years, 6 months ago) |
|
|
Why don't they just leave the poor rats alone ...
Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine November 8, 2010 - NewScientist.com
When newborn female rats are given a substance mimicking cannabis, their brains become more masculine – as does their behaviour.
Margaret McCarthy from the University of Maryland in Baltimore and colleagues found that newborn female rats usually make more new cells than males in a part of their brain called the amygdala, an area that governs social and emotional behaviour.
They also found that females had a smaller endocannabinoid system, involving brain receptors that react to cannabis. That correlation made them wonder whether injecting substances that mimicked cannabis would alter the rate of cell proliferation in the amygdala. To find out, the team injected newborn rats with a compound that triggers cannabinoid receptors in the brain. They also injected a chemical that allowed them to see cell division in brain tissue. To find out how these changes affected rats' behaviour, the team also studied the playing habits of the pups after four weeks.
Without treatment, female rats produced between 30 and 50 per cent more glial cells – which help maintain homeostasis and protect neurons – in the amygdala than males. They also played 30 to 40 per cent less than males. But females that were given cannabinoid compounds had cell proliferation rates and play behaviour similar to those of males.
"Play behaviour is similarly sex-specific in humans," says McCarthy. "The ultimate goal is now to find out whether the neurological underpinnings of this behaviour, which we are beginning to understand in this study, are similar in humans".
Javier Fernández Ruiz from the Complutense University in Madrid, Spain, says the study is well-designed and convincing. But he emphasises that what it describes is a physiological process in the brains of rats, and that since the study did not use a plant-derived cannabinoid, or higher doses to reflect the fact that mouse metabolism is quicker than humans, no conclusions can be made about the effects of conventional cannabis on human babies.
|
monkeyheaven



Registered: 07/09/07
Posts: 964
Loc: yonder
|
Re: Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine [Re: veggie]
#13457386 - 11/09/10 02:38 AM (13 years, 6 months ago) |
|
|
I was surprised to read that baby girls allegedly play about 30-40 percent less than boys. I find this hard to beleive.
If true, these scientists have found a way to make girls more fun by getting them high.
Did I read this right?
|
guest1
Mycena




Registered: 05/25/09
Posts: 852
Last seen: 1 year, 5 months
|
Re: Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine [Re: monkeyheaven]
#13457506 - 11/09/10 04:05 AM (13 years, 6 months ago) |
|
|
So wait... by "masculine" you mean "more glial cells to help maintain homeostasis and protect neurons and playing 30-40% more." I believe "masculine" was the wrong word to use.
|
Green_T


Registered: 10/02/08
Posts: 4,042
Loc: UK
|
Re: Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine [Re: guest1]
#13457514 - 11/09/10 04:11 AM (13 years, 6 months ago) |
|
|
^ I think it reads fewer glial cells and playing 30-40% more. Even though the study implies it makes the brains more similar to males, I think it is a bit misleading to say "masculine", since that implies genitalia are affected.
This is an interesting result, but should have no bearing on the legal status of cannabis.
--------------------
"I have sworn upon the altar of god eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man" - Thomas Jefferson Legalize Meth | Drug War Victims
|
StatuesCryBleeding
Mycology Enthusiast


Registered: 09/14/10
Posts: 450
Loc: The Great White North
Last seen: 10 years, 6 months
|
Re: Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine [Re: Green_T]
#13457558 - 11/09/10 04:54 AM (13 years, 6 months ago) |
|
|
I can't wait to see the ultra conservative report on this.
Fox news: *Smoking marihuana leads to homosexuality and smaller brains in rats.*
|
dragonhat
Stranger
Registered: 10/07/10
Posts: 111
Last seen: 11 years, 5 months
|
Re: Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine [Re: veggie]
#13458486 - 11/09/10 11:35 AM (13 years, 6 months ago) |
|
|
It irritates me that the title of the article is "Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine, when the article clearly states that the substance was one that "mimicked cannabis", and the professor emphasized that no conclusions could be made about actual cannabis and humans because of the fact they used mice, and a synthetic cannabinoid.
Quote:
veggie said: Cannabis compounds make newborn females more masculine
When newborn female rats are given a substance mimicking cannabis, their brains become more masculine – as does their behaviour.
But he emphasises that what it describes is a physiological process in the brains of rats, and that since the study did not use a plant-derived cannabinoid, or higher doses to reflect the fact that mouse metabolism is quicker than humans, no conclusions can be made about the effects of conventional cannabis on human babies.
|
|