Effects of Δ⁹-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabinol in Man

Abstract

The interaction of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ⁹-THC) and cannabinol (CBN) was studied in man. Five male volunteers were given placebo, 50 mg CBN, 25 mg Δ⁹-THC, 12.5 mg Δ⁹-THC + 25 mg CBN, and 25 mg Δ⁹-THC + 50 mg CBN (orally). Administrations were spaced 1 week apart. With physiological measures, Δ⁹-THC produced an increase in heart rate while CBN did not. When combined, no change of the Δ⁹-THC effect occurred. No changes occurred on the electrocardiogram, blood pressure, or body temperature. With psychophysical measures no changes occurred in pain thresholds or skin sensitivity as a function of drug treatment. In time estimates of the passage of 1 minute, Δ⁹ -THC alone produced underestimates of the passage of 1 minute and CBN alone had no effect. In combination the two drugs had a tendency to produce significant overestimates and underestimates of the passage of 1 minute. On a 66-item adjective-pair drug reaction scale, the volunteers reported feeling drugged, drunk, dizzy, and drowsy under the Δ⁹ -THC condition, but not under the CBN condition. With combined drug treatment, volunteers reported feeling more drugged, drunk, dizzy, and drowsy than under the Δ⁹-THC condition alone. None of the drug treatments produced significant changes on other items which included items on perception, emotion, cognition and sociability. It appears that CBN increases the effect of Δ⁹-THC on some aspects of physiological and psychological processes, but that these effects are small and cannot account for the greater potency which has been reported when plant material is used.

Endocannabinoid Catabolic Enzymes Play Differential Roles in Thermal Homeostasis in Response to Environmental or Immune Challenge

“…Thermoregulation is a critical component of homeostasis and is critical for survival across endothermic and ectothermic species. Beyond self-reported coldness (Hollister, 1971) cannabinoids do not induce the overt, statistically significant hypothermia in humans (Karniol et al, 1975; Fant et al, 1998) that is observed in rodents. However, the present study reveals that MAGL protects mice from thermal dysregulation caused by LPS or cold ambient temperature.…”

Comparison of the subjective effects of Δ 9 -tetrahydrocannabinol and marijuana in humans

“…For example, cannabinol (at a concentration of 0.30%) was one constituent of the marijuana used in these studies. Although cannabinol does not have THClike effects itself (Hollister 1973;Perez-Reyes et al 1973), it has been shown to enhance subjects' reports of feeling drugged, drunk, dizzy, and drowsy in response to THC (Karniol et al 1975;Musty et al 1976). Thus, it would be of interest systematically to vary the concentrations of cannabinol and other cannabinoids to determine whether they contribute to the effects of marijuana.…”

The acute effects of cannabinoids on memory in humans: a review

“…In attempting to quantify the dose of Δ-9-THC extracted from a typical cannabis cigarette, several factors need to be considered including, but not limited to, the weight of a cannabis cigarette, the potency of Δ-9-THC in the herbal cannabis preparation, and the presence of other cannabinoids (Karniol and Carlini 1973;Karniol et al 1974Karniol et al , 1975Turner et al 1980). Furthermore, the amount of Δ-9-THC delivered is influenced by several factors including the rate of inhalation, depth of puffs, duration of puffs, volume inhaled, extent of breath-holding after inhalation, the amount lost by smoke escaping into the air or respiratory dead space, vital capacity, the length of cigarette smoked, the adeptness of smoking, and the subject's overall experience in titrating the dose.…”