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Examining Genetically-Informed Etiologic Models Of Co-Occurring Posttraumatic Stress Disorder And Recreational Cannabis Use Among College Students, Terrell A. Hicks
Examining Genetically-Informed Etiologic Models Of Co-Occurring Posttraumatic Stress Disorder And Recreational Cannabis Use Among College Students, Terrell A. Hicks
Theses and Dissertations
The college years encompass a period of increased risk recreational cannabis use (RCU), as well as a time of increased risk for trauma exposure and developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Given the high co-occurrence between RCU and PTSD, and the potentially negative consequences of the two (e.g., worse academic outcomes), there is a need to understand the etiologic mechanisms of these commonly co-occurring conditions. Two primary phenotypic models exist: self-medication model (i.e., PTSD to RCU) and the high-risk model (i.e., RCU to PTSD). To date, there are two existing studies longitudinally examining the etiologic models proposed to explain co-occurring RCU …
Resting State Functional Connectivity In The Default Mode Network: Relationships Between Cannabis Use, Gender, And Cognition In Adolescents And Young Adults, Megan Ritchay
Theses and Dissertations
Introduction: Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit substance in the United States, and nearly 1 in 4 young adults are current cannabis users. The psychoactive component of cannabis, THC, is active at cannabinoid receptors, type 1, or CB1 receptors. CB1 receptors play a critical role in neural development, and chronic cannabis use causes desensitization and downregulation of these receptors. Chronic cannabis use is associated with changes in resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) in the default mode network (DMN) in adolescents and young adults, although results are somewhat inconsistent across studies, likely due to differing methodologies. Additionally, cannabis effects appear …
Cannabis-Using Youth Demonstrated Blunted Rostral Anterior Cingulate Cortex Activation, But Normal Functional Connectivity, During An Emotional Go/No-Go Task, Kristin Elizabeth Maple
Cannabis-Using Youth Demonstrated Blunted Rostral Anterior Cingulate Cortex Activation, But Normal Functional Connectivity, During An Emotional Go/No-Go Task, Kristin Elizabeth Maple
Theses and Dissertations
Cannabis use has been associated with deficits in self-regulation, including inhibitory control. Cannabis users have previously exhibited both structural and functional deficits in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC), a region involved in self-regulation of emotional response and inhibitory control. The present study aimed to examine whether abstinent cannabis users demonstrated abnormal functional activation and connectivity of the bilateral rACC during an emotional inhibitory processing task, and whether gender moderated these relationships. The study also aimed to examine whether bilateral rACC activation and connectivity in cannabis users was related to perceived stress. It was hypothesized that cannabis users would exhibit …
Cannabis Use And Affective Processing: A Brain Structure Analysis, Kristin E. Maple
Cannabis Use And Affective Processing: A Brain Structure Analysis, Kristin E. Maple
Theses and Dissertations
Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit drug amongst adolescents and young adults in the United States. Previously, cannabis and its components have been associated with differences in affective processing and neural functioning. Participants (ages 16-25) were cannabis users and non-users excluded for psychiatric disorders, major medical conditions, and excessive other drug use. A series of multiple regressions examined whether past year cannabis use and cannabis x gender predicted measures of emotional face processing (using the PennCNP affective battery) as well as volumes in bilateral prefrontal, temporal, limbic, and cerebellar regions, as well as frontolimbic white matter tracts. Subsequently, Pearson …