Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol during pregnancy in the rat: I. Differential effects on maternal nutrition, embryotoxicity, and growth in the offspring.

Either 15 or 50 mg/kg of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in sesame oil was administered by gastric intubation to gravid rats during the last two weeks of gestation. A pair-fed control group was administered the vehicle alone and allowed to eat and drink only the amount consumed by the 50 mg/kg group on the same gestation days. A nontreated control group was left undisturbed during pregnancy. All treated and control litters were fostered at birth to untreated dams. Among the dams receiving 50 mg/kg of THC, food and water intake was initially reduced to 75-80% of nontreated controls but then recovered over 3-4 days to approximately a 15-20% reduction until term. Compared with the nontreated dams, both THC dose-level groups and pair-fed control dams gained significantly less body weight from conception to term. Offspring mortality did not differ between the nontreated and pair-fed controls but was significantly higher among both dose-level THC exposed groups. In addition, there was a dose-related increase in the sex-ratio of live male to female offspring as well as significant effects on rate of growth for both sexes. The results are discussed with respect to published animal and clinical studies of cannabinoid exposure during pregnancy.