Topic: Effects of cannabis on the adolescent brain and epigenetic aging
This project is one of a number that are in competition for funding from the GW4 BioMed2 MRC Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP) which is offering up to 20 studentships for entry in October 2022.
Cannabis is used by approximately 200 million people worldwide. This number is set to increase as cannabis is legalised in the USA, Canada and beyond. One of the key public health concerns arising from this is the potential adverse impact of cannabis use on the developing brain.
Advances in our understanding of the endocannabinoid system show that it plays a key role in adolescent neurodevelopment. Cannabinoid receptors are abundantly expressed in brain regions which change rapidly during adolescence and are highly interconnected with white matter fibers. Because cannabis acts on cannabinoid receptors, adolescence could mark a crucial developmental window of heightened vulnerability to the effects of cannabis.
This studentship will provide exclusive access to data from a major MRC-funded project: “How does cannabis use affect teenagers’ brains, cognitive functions and psychological wellbeing? (cannTEEN)”, registered on the Open Science Framework: https://osf.io/2sbx3/. You will work with an unprecedented dataset including a suite of neuroimaging, genetic, clinical, cognitive, and biological marker data, supervised by international experts in cannabinoid psychopharmacology, neuroimaging and epigenetics. You will benefit from access to world-leading training and facilities across GW4, and you will be supported in developing the project according to your own interests and recent advances in the field to develop your independence and leadership skills.
The cannTEEN study consists of four groups (adolescent cannabis users, adolescent controls, adult cannabis users, adult controls) followed up every three months for one year. You will have the opportunity to address the following research questions:
Are adolescents more vulnerable to the effects of cannabis use than adults on (i) brain structure (ii), white matter microstructure, (iii) brain aging, (iv) epigenetic aging? Furthermore, are these changes associated with clinical symptoms of mental health and addiction, biological markers of cannabis use, and changes in the endocannabinoid system?
This studentship will be the first longitudinal study to directly compare how adolescents and adults differ in response to cannabis use on the brain and aging, with the potential to inform policy (e.g. minimum age restrictions for cannabis sales).
