Effects of Cannabinol Derivatives on Blood Pressure, Body Weight, Pituitary-Adrenal Function, and Mitochondrial Respiration in the Rat

Abstract

Interactions of cannabinoids with pituitary-adrenal functioning deserve a clearer delineation in order to define their relevance to the etiology of hypertension and because information available on this subject is scant. Barry et al. [1] reported raised circulating corticosterone levels in normotensive rats after the acute administration of Δ⁹-THC, and Dewey et al. [6] observed a decrease in adrenal ascorbic acid. In this laboratory, chronic IP administration of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ⁹-THC) at a daily dose of 3 mg/kg for 1 week caused a slight and statistically not significant lowering of circulating corticosterone levels in rats with adrenal regeneration hypertension [3]. Such animals responded to this dose, which is moderate for the rat, by a statistically highly significant well sustained decline in blood pressure, suggesting neither accumulation nor habituation over the 1-week period of drug administration, or else a precise cancelling out of the two effects. Body weight was not affected (and food intake was not measured, in contrast to a citation of our work [10]).