# Effects of cannabis on age-related cognitive decline and Alzheimers disease pathology

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA · 2021 · $604,355

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY:
 Older adults are the fastest-growing group of cannabis users in the US. Older adults use cannabis for a variety
of reasons, including pain, insomnia, anxiety, and for recreation. Cannabis can, however, also exert robust
effects on cognition. Almost all research on cannabis/cannabinoids and cognition has been conducted in young
adults, and largely shows that acute administration impairs mnemonic and executive functions mediated by the
medial temporal lobe and prefrontal cortex (which are also those most vulnerable to decline in aging and age-
related neurodegenerative disease). In contrast, a few studies suggest that cannabinoids can exert distinct
effects on the aged compared to the young brain, and preliminary data from our labs show that cannabis can
actually enhance cognition selectively in aged rats. Indeed, cannabinoids have been proposed as potential
treatments for the age-related neurodegenerative condition Alzheimer's disease (AD), and some preclinical
research shows that cannabinoids can attenuate markers linked to AD pathology (e.g., neuroinflammation).
Aging studies evaluating cannabis to date, however, are very limited and have not employed either cannabis
itself or routes of administration that model those used most frequently by people (smoking and oral
consumption). As such, it is unclear how cannabis, as it is actually used, affects cognitive decline and the
synaptic dysfunction and AD-like pathology that contribute to cognitive impairments in older subjects.
 The long-term goal of our program is to determine how cannabis affects cognitive decline in aging and AD,
and to determine the mechanisms of such effects. The objective of the current proposal is to model the two
most common routes of human cannabis use (smoking and oral consumption) in well-characterized rat models
of age-related cognitive decline, and to use these models to begin to elucidate effects of cannabis on behavioral
and neurobiological dysfunction associated with aging and AD. Our overarching hypothesis is that cannabis
can benefit cognition in aging by attenuating age-associated synaptic dysfunction, neuroinflammation, and tau
pathology. Aim 1 will determine how acute cannabis affects performance in young adult and aged rats, as well
as the synaptic mechanisms supporting effects of cannabis on cognition in aged subjects. Aim 2 will assess
effects of chronic cannabis on cognition in young adult and aged rats, as well as on excitatory/inhibitory signaling
and inflammatory markers linked to age-related cognitive impairments. Aim 3 will assess effects of chronic
cannabis on AD-like tau pathology and cognition using a novel, targeted AAV-based approach in aged rats. The
proposed experiments will be significant because they will provide foundational data concerning whether and
how cannabis administration relevant for human consumption yields benefits for age-related cognitive decline
and neuropathology.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10316617
- **Project number:** 1R01AG072714-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** JENNIFER Lynn BIZON
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $604,355
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-08-15 → 2026-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10316617

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10316617, Effects of cannabis on age-related cognitive decline and Alzheimers disease pathology (1R01AG072714-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10316617. Licensed CC0.

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