The Developing Brain

MSI PI Christopher Faulk (assistant professor, Animal Science) and colleagues have published a study that investigates the effect of cannabidiol (CBD) use during pregnancy. The study found that there are effects on cognition and mood in the offspring of mothers who take CBD, even if the infants are not exposed to CBD after birth. This research indicates that more study is needed to set safety requirements in the use of CBD. The study was published in the journal Clinical Epigenetics: N.M. Wanner, M. Colwell, C. Drown, C. Faulk. 2021. Developmental cannabidiol exposure increases anxiety and modifies genome-wide brain DNA methylation in adult female mice. Clinical Epigenetics 13. doi: 10.1186/s13148-020-00993-4.

A story about this research appears on the University of Minnesota News website: Cannabidiol User During Pregnancy Affects the Brain and Behavior in Adulthood.

Professor Faulk uses MSI resources for comparative genomics research in animal science.