Faculty
Chemistry
Supervisor Name
Dr. Ken Yeung
Keywords
rats, maternal, THC, tetrahydrocannabinol, omega-3, DHA, docosahexaenoic acid, fatty acids
Description
This research focuses on investigating whether maternal exposure to THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) has an effect on lowering DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid) levels in female and male offspring, and if an omega-3 rich diet, containing DHA, is able to recover DHA levels following a THC caused deficiency. To study this, DHA levels in rat brain tissues from 21-Day-Old offspring were compared across four different groups of maternal rats, vehicle rats with a controlled diet (veh/ct), vehicle rats with an omega-3 rich diet (veh/n3), THC treated rats with a controlled diet (thc/ct), and THC treated rats with an omega-3 rich diet (thc/n3) using MALDI-IMS (Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Imaging Mass Spectrometry). Using MALDI-IMS allowed a mass spectrum of all the ion masses present in the rat brain tissues to be collected, and the spatial distributions and identifies of the various compounds present in the sample could be determined. The effect of each condition on DHA levels was then able to be studied by comparing peak area ratios from DHA ions to the veh/ct group. It was determined that on average, THC is responsible for lowering DHA levels in thc/ct rats, and that omega-3 rich diets were successful at increasing DHA levels in both the veh/n3 and thc/n3 conditions, with DHA levels usually being found in higher amounts than in the veh/ct. Female rats on omega-3 rich diets also showed a greater increase in DHA levels than male rats.
Acknowledgements
I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Ken Yeung, Kristina Jurcic, and Samantha Cousineau for their guidance, support, and patience while teaching and supervising me during my time in the USRI program.
Also, special thanks to the coordinators and funders of the USRI program which made my time in Dr.Yeung’s lab possible.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Document Type
Poster
Included in
Investigating DHA Levels in Rat Brain Tissues in Relation to Maternal THC Exposure Using MALDI-IMS
This research focuses on investigating whether maternal exposure to THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) has an effect on lowering DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid) levels in female and male offspring, and if an omega-3 rich diet, containing DHA, is able to recover DHA levels following a THC caused deficiency. To study this, DHA levels in rat brain tissues from 21-Day-Old offspring were compared across four different groups of maternal rats, vehicle rats with a controlled diet (veh/ct), vehicle rats with an omega-3 rich diet (veh/n3), THC treated rats with a controlled diet (thc/ct), and THC treated rats with an omega-3 rich diet (thc/n3) using MALDI-IMS (Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Imaging Mass Spectrometry). Using MALDI-IMS allowed a mass spectrum of all the ion masses present in the rat brain tissues to be collected, and the spatial distributions and identifies of the various compounds present in the sample could be determined. The effect of each condition on DHA levels was then able to be studied by comparing peak area ratios from DHA ions to the veh/ct group. It was determined that on average, THC is responsible for lowering DHA levels in thc/ct rats, and that omega-3 rich diets were successful at increasing DHA levels in both the veh/n3 and thc/n3 conditions, with DHA levels usually being found in higher amounts than in the veh/ct. Female rats on omega-3 rich diets also showed a greater increase in DHA levels than male rats.