The journal entry titled Estrogen Improves Response Accuracy and
Attenuates the Disruptive Effects of 9 -THC in Ovariectomized Rats
Responding Under a Multiple Schedule of Repeated Acquisition and
Performance[footnoteRef:0] written by Jill M. Daniel, Peter J.
Winsauer, Ian N. Brauner, and Joseph M. Moerschbaecher was written
to show the consequences and behavior of the two being delivered to
Ovariectomized rats. The research shows Estrogen improves response
accuracy and weakens the effects of Tetrahydrocannabinol. [0:
Behavioral Neuroscience Copyright 2002 by the American
Psychological Association, Inc.2002, Vol. 116, No. 6, 989998]
Because of the Ovariectomy, each rat served as its own control.
One half of the Ovariectomized rats received Estrogen and the other
half received cholesterol. The hormones were delivered via pellets.
While the hormones were being delivered, they also train the rats
to give a response to a series of 4 keys.The task was to press
their nose on the keys in a specific order (e.g.,
centerleftrightcenter). Completing it in the correct sequence would
turn the key lights off and reset the keys. After each second
successful response, the rat was rewarded food. If the rats got the
response incorrect, the error would be followed by a five second
timeout. Incorrect responses do not reset the keys.Replacement of
Estrogen in Ovariectomized rats has shown to reduce the ability of
Tetrahydrocannabinol to slow down the rate of response and increase
the percentage of error compared to the ones given cholesterol. The
rats that received Estrogen alone has shown to improve the accuracy
of response and the percentage of response rate showed no
significant response compared to the control. The Estrogen rats
showed a significantly lower percentage of errors compared to the
ones that received cholesterol.The researchers have come to the
conclusion that Estrogen does indeed attenuate the effects of THC
and improves the response accuracy of the Ovariectomized rats. One
important finding is that estrogen is shown to decrease the ability
of THC to decrease the response accuracy and rate. Estrogen alone
has shown to improve the accuracy of response without affecting the
rate of response.In conclusion, This could mean that THC may
affects females differently than males. It wasnt surprising to find
out that THC slows down the rate of response and response accuracy.
One surprising thing i found was that Estrogen significantly
affects the hippocampus of the brain. There are many cannabinoids
in the hippocampus so it makes sense that estrogen would affect
it.
