Cited by 72Prenatal Substance Exposure EffectsCannabis and Cannabinoid ResearchFunctional Brain Connectivity Studies

Functional Connectivity Disruption in Neonates with Prenatal Marijuana Exposure

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Grewen, Karen, Salzwedel, Andrew P., Gao, Wei·2015·Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

Abstract

Prenatal marijuana exposure (PME) is linked to neurobehavioral and cognitive impairments; however, findings in childhood and adolescence are inconsistent. Type-1 cannabinoid receptors (CB1R) modulate fetal neurodevelopment, mediating PME effects on growth of functional circuitry sub-serving behaviors critical for academic and social success. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of prenatal marijuana on development of early brain functional circuitry prior to prolonged postnatal environmental influences. We measured resting state functional connectivity during unsedated sleep in infants at 2-6 weeks (+MJ: 20 with PME in combination with nicotine, alcohol, opiates, and/or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors; -MJ: 23 exposed to the same other drugs without marijuana, CTR: 20 drug-free controls). Connectivity of subcortical seed regions with high fetal CB1R expression was examined. Marijuana-specific differences were observed in insula and three striatal connections: anterior insula-cerebellum, right caudate-cerebellum, right caudate-right fusiform gyrus/inferior occipital, left caudate-cerebellum. +MJ neonates had hypo-connectivity in all clusters compared with -MJ and CTR groups. Altered striatal connectivity to areas involved in visual spatial and motor learning, attention, and in fine-tuning of motor outputs involved in movement and language production may contribute to neurobehavioral deficits reported in this at-risk group. Disrupted anterior insula connectivity may contribute to altered integration of interoceptive signals with salience estimates, motivation, decision-making, and later drug use. Compared with CTRs, both +MJ and -MJ groups demonstrated hyper-connectivity of left amygdala seed with orbital frontal cortex and hypo-connectivity of posterior thalamus seed with hippocampus, suggesting vulnerability to multiple drugs in these circuits.

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Authors
Grewen, K., Salzwedel, A. P., & Gao, W.
Affiliations
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
Corresponding author
  • Grewen, Karen
  • Gao, Wei
Venue
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Published
2015-11-04
Volume
9
Pages
601-601
ISSN
1662-5161 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2172909546
Cited by
72
References
133
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 5
FWCI
4.31
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • UNC Libraries
Funders
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (R03DA036645, P01DA022446)
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (R21NS088975)
  • University of North Carolina (Start Up Funds to WG)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Prenatal Substance Exposure Effects
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
Keywords
prenatal cannabis exposure, resting-state functional connectivity, neonates, CB1 receptor, striatal connectivity, anterior insula, caudate nucleus, cerebellum, amygdala, thalamus, fetal brain development, neurobehavioral deficits

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