14 Comments

  1. From what I read I collected that this study was a form of quality control for a different study. Will you go ahead and continue to study the effects of THC on these cells now that you have been able to get this foundation validated?

    1. Thanks for your question. Yes, absolutely we are moving forward with our study. We have some additional experiments to conduct to determine percentage of contamination of human astrocytes with other brain cells. After building this strong foundation on authenticity of cells, we will begin to examine the effect of THC on human astrocytes and how THC-exposed astrocytes affect neurons and other non-neuronal cells.

    1. Thanks for asking – I have an interest in the medical field and hopefully one day I will have a job in a hospital setting. I always had an interest in neuroscience. As I watched the 2020 election results I noticed an increase in public demand for cannabis use for various reasons. As a result, we have 46 US states that allowed their constituents to use cannabis. There is a general sense that cannabis is safe. However, research results are contrary to this public belief. I was drawn to find out how cannabis affects the human body in the particular the brain. It is possible that some compounds of cannabis do have beneficial effects for certain medical scenarios but several other cannabis compounds like psychoactive THC does not. Dr. Kumari’s lab was already working in this field and I joined in to take benefit of this opportunity.

  3. I enjoyed that you were neutral when talking about this topic and the introduction helped me understand more about this study without having to major in biology.

  4. Victoria,

    Thank you for sharing about your research!

    I think it is an interesting and important study given the growing number of the consumption in the U.S. I hope to learn more about the impact on cannabis consumption on long-term memory. There are three methods that had been utilized in the study. I was curious if there is a particular method produces more accurate results compare to others?
    Thank you.

    1. Thanks for your question. We used three methods to authenticate cells in our study. These three methods complement each other, one method (immunocytochemistry) shows the cellular location of the protein, the 2nd method (Western blotting) shows how much protein is present in the cells, and the 3rd method (real-time PCR) shows that mRNA of the respective does exist in the cells. A multi-prong approach is scientifically sound than just using a single method.

  5. Your research was very interesting! Do you think these findings/existing literature on the topic are significant enough to warrant the decrease of legalization of CBD? Or would you need more research on the effects?

    1. Thanks for asking the question. CBD is being used in so many ways right now, including makeup. Yes, we certainly do need more data from properly conducted scientific studies to determine CBD’s beneficial effects. Demonstrating the long-term effects of THC and CBD in the brain will help lawmakers to determine what’s best for the population.

  6. There was a lot of terminology I was unaware of by just looking at your poster but I believe the way you organized and explained your perspectives on the project made more sense and gave me a better understanding of what you learned. My favorite part about this study is that you analyzed the brain more in depth on a more neurological level. Aside from all your research, do you still have certain things you are still confused about or is there anything else in particular you wish to know more about with one using Cannabis? I agree with understanding that cannabis may have certain benefits, however, I also believe excessive use can be harmful for the human body long-term both physically and cognitive purposes.

    1. Thank you. I certainly want to have a better understanding of the applications of cannabis as an alternative treatment for some disorders. This is a good head start, as by understanding the effects of THC on astrocytes we can further study addiction, as well as both beneficial and deleterious effects on other disorders.

  8. Bravo, you did a great job! My Latin medical terminology class really came in handy for your presentation, but I will say there were still some terms I didn’t understand. I love that the science community is getting more research out there about cannabis use and its effects on the human brain. Good luck with the continuation of your study!

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