A single dose of cannabidiol modulates the relationship between hippocampal glutamate and learning-related prefrontal activation in individuals at Clinical High Risk of Psychosis
Yiling Shi , Cathy Davies , Robin Wilson , Elizabeth Appiah-Kusi , David J. Lythgoe , Gemma Modinos , Sagnik Bhattacharyya
{"title":"A single dose of cannabidiol modulates the relationship between hippocampal glutamate and learning-related prefrontal activation in individuals at Clinical High Risk of Psychosis","authors":"Yiling Shi , Cathy Davies , Robin Wilson , Elizabeth Appiah-Kusi , David J. Lythgoe , Gemma Modinos , Sagnik Bhattacharyya","doi":"10.1016/j.pscychresns.2025.112095","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Cannabidiol (CBD) is being studied as a potential intervention for the people at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR), though the mechanisms underlying its effects are not fully understood. Previous studies indicate that a single dose of CBD can normalize alterations in memory-related brain activation and modulate hippocampal glutamate levels in the early stages of psychosis. This study aimed to examine the acute effects of CBD on the relationship between hippocampal glutamate levels and brain activation during verbal memory in individuals at CHR.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A total of thirty-three participants (n = 33) at CHR were randomly assigned to receive a single 600 mg dose of CBD (CHR-CBD) or a placebo capsule (CHR-PLB). Age-matched healthy controls (HC) (n = 19) received no study drugs. Participants underwent MRI scanning while performing a verbal learning task, and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy to measure hippocampal glutamate levels. Effect of group x hippocampal glutamate interactions on brain activation was tested.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>CHR-PLB showed positive correlation between hippocampal glutamate levels and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) (Pcorr. = 0.0039) activation compared to HC during both verbal encoding and recall. Under a single dose of CBD, the glutamate-dlPFC activation relationship was negative and significantly different compared to placebo in CHR individuals (Pcorr. = 0.0001) during both verbal encoding and recall. The reversed correlation in CBD group was also observed in the parahippocampal gyrus (Pcorr. = 0.0022) and amygdala (Pcorr. = 0.0019) during verbal recall.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>These findings suggest that CBD may normalise disrupted hippocampal–prefrontal glutamatergic coupling in CHR, highlighting its potential to target the neurochemical mechanisms underlying cognitive impairment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20776,"journal":{"name":"Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging","volume":"355 ","pages":"Article 112095"},"PeriodicalIF":2.4000,"publicationDate":"2026-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925492725001507","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2025/11/25 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"CLINICAL NEUROLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
Cannabidiol (CBD) is being studied as a potential intervention for the people at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR), though the mechanisms underlying its effects are not fully understood. Previous studies indicate that a single dose of CBD can normalize alterations in memory-related brain activation and modulate hippocampal glutamate levels in the early stages of psychosis. This study aimed to examine the acute effects of CBD on the relationship between hippocampal glutamate levels and brain activation during verbal memory in individuals at CHR.
Methods
A total of thirty-three participants (n = 33) at CHR were randomly assigned to receive a single 600 mg dose of CBD (CHR-CBD) or a placebo capsule (CHR-PLB). Age-matched healthy controls (HC) (n = 19) received no study drugs. Participants underwent MRI scanning while performing a verbal learning task, and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy to measure hippocampal glutamate levels. Effect of group x hippocampal glutamate interactions on brain activation was tested.
Results
CHR-PLB showed positive correlation between hippocampal glutamate levels and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) (Pcorr. = 0.0039) activation compared to HC during both verbal encoding and recall. Under a single dose of CBD, the glutamate-dlPFC activation relationship was negative and significantly different compared to placebo in CHR individuals (Pcorr. = 0.0001) during both verbal encoding and recall. The reversed correlation in CBD group was also observed in the parahippocampal gyrus (Pcorr. = 0.0022) and amygdala (Pcorr. = 0.0019) during verbal recall.
Conclusions
These findings suggest that CBD may normalise disrupted hippocampal–prefrontal glutamatergic coupling in CHR, highlighting its potential to target the neurochemical mechanisms underlying cognitive impairment.
期刊介绍:
The Neuroimaging section of Psychiatry Research publishes manuscripts on positron emission tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, computerized electroencephalographic topography, regional cerebral blood flow, computed tomography, magnetoencephalography, autoradiography, post-mortem regional analyses, and other imaging techniques. Reports concerning results in psychiatric disorders, dementias, and the effects of behaviorial tasks and pharmacological treatments are featured. We also invite manuscripts on the methods of obtaining images and computer processing of the images themselves. Selected case reports are also published.