Physiological and Behavioral Effects

Physiological and behavioral indicators of impact within a population are the classical means by which the health of populations is assessed. The major drawback has been the extrapolation of these factors based upon the health of an individual organism, attributing the damage to a particular pollutant and extrapolating this to the population level. 

Reproductive success is certainly another measure of the health of an organism and is the principal indicator of the Darwinian fitness of an organism. In a laboratory situation it clearly is possible to measure fecundity and the success of offspring in their maturation. In nature these parameters may be very difficult to measure accurately. Many factors other than pollution can lead to poor reproductive success. Secondary effects, such as the impact of habitat loss on zooplankton populations essential for fry feeding, will be seen in the depression or elimination of the young age classes. 

Mortality is certainly easy to assay on the individual organism. Macroinvertebrates such as bivalves and cnidaria can be examined, and since they are relatively sessile, the mortality can be attributed to a factor in the immediate environment. Fish, being mobile, can die due to exposure kilometers away or because of multiple intoxications during their migrations. By the time the fish are dying, the other levels of the ecosystem are in a sad state. 

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Several investigators have shown that many of the physiological and behavioral effects of opioids can be conditioned. For example, environmental stimuli that have been paired with morphine administration can elicit morphine-like effects, such as hyperthermia, when presented in the absence of morphine [76-79], In line with these studies, our laboratory provided the first demonstration that alterations of immune status can be conditioned to environmental stimuli that have been paired with morphine administration [80-82], In that investigation, rats received subcutaneous injections of morphine in a distinctive environment. When rats subsequently were re-exposed to the distinctive... 

Various autonomic, physiological and behavioral effects of oxytocin could contribute to the development and expression of maternal behavior (Uvnas-Moberg, 1996). Para-... 

Burris, A. S., Banks, S. M., Carter, C. S., Davidson, J. M., and Sherins, R. J. 1992. A long-term, prospective study of the physiologic and behavioral effects of hormone replacement in untreated hypogonadal men. Journal of Andrology 13 297-304. 

Fudala, P.J., Jaffe, J.H., Dax, E.M., Johnson, R.E. Use of buprenorphine in the treatment of opioid addiction. II. Physiologic and behavioral effects of daily and alternate-day administration and abrupt withdrawal, Clin. Pharmacol. Ther. 1990, 47, 525-534. 

Exposure to toxic fire effluents can lead to a combination of physiological and behavioral effects of which physical incapacitation, loss of motor coordination, disorientation are only a few. Furthermore, survivors of a fire may experience postexposure effects, complications, and burn injuries, leading to death or long-term impairment. The major effects, such as incapacitation or death, may be predicted using existing rat lethality data, as described in ISO 1334431 or more recently, based on the best available estimates of human toxicity thresholds as described in ISO 13571,5 by quantifying the fire effluents in different fire conditions in small-scale tests, using only chemical analysis, without animal exposure. 

McCance EF, Price LH, Kosten TR, Jatlow PI. Cocaethylene pharmacology, physiology and behavioral effects in humans. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 1995 274(l) 215-23. 

Site of action Biochemical monitoring Physiological and behavioral effects Population parameters Community parameters Ecosystem effects... 

Ecdysone induces the larval-pupal metamorphosis in the absence of JH or a JH-active insecticide, but the presence of active compounds leads to a new larval stage at ecdysis, or to the development of larval-nymphal, larval-pupal, or larval-adult intermediates that are unable to give rise to normal adults. Treated pupae (e.g., tobacco cutworms treated with pyriproxyfen) may develop into normal adults. However, the females are unable to deposit eggs because a substance that induces oviposition behavior after mating is not released in the hemolymph. Other physiological and behavioral effects of JH-active insecticides are also observed. 

Cannabinoid Research Methods and Protocols is to provide experimental protocols for scientists interested in marijuana-carmabinoid research from genes to behavior. Although the effects of marijuana use and its medicinal applications may be influenced by multiple genetic factors, the role of environmental factors in the behavioral and psychological effects should not be overlooked, although these may be difficult to replicate in animal models. Nevertheless, animal models are widely used to study the physiological and behavioral correlates of human disorders. Of course, where applicable, humans have been used to study the biochemical, physiological, and behavioral effects of mari-juana-cannabinoids as documented here. 

Heuberger, E., Ilmberger, J., Hartter, E., and Bnchbaner, G. 2008. Physiological and behavioral effects of 1,8-cineol and ( ) linalool A comparison of inhalation and massage aromatherapy. Natural Product Communications 3(7) 1103 1110. 

Foltin RW. Acute physiological and behavioral effects of intranasal methamphetamine in humans. Neuropsychopharmacology 2008 33 1847-55. 

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