Modeling the Effects of Chronic Marijuana Use on Neuroinflammation and HIV-related Neuronal Injury

Modeling the Effects of Chronic Marijuana Use on Neuroinflammation and HIV-related Neuronal Injury

This study applies a hypothesis-driven approach to examine the effects of chronic marijuana use on HIV-associated inflammation and its subsequent impacts on central nervous system function, with the goal of identifying the mechanisms through which cannabinoids modulate neurological disorders and other comorbidities in persons with HIV.

Inclusion Criteria:

• verified HIV status
• Current marijuana use (MJ+ groups only)
• No current marijuana use (MJ- groups only)
• current engagement in HIV care (HIV+ participants only)
• receipt of cART as first-line of treatment (HIV+ participants only)
• stable cART regimen (HIV+ participants only)
• undetectable HIV RNA viral load for >1 year (HIV+ participants only)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Lifetime abuse for any illicit drug other than marijuana
• <9th grade education; illiteracy or lack of fluency in English
• history of moderate or severe head trauma
• unstable or serious neurological disorders
• severe mental illness
• systemic autoimmune diseases
• immunotherapy
• MRI contraindications