STONED

Studies To Observe Novel in vivo Endocannabinoid-related Drugs (STONED) is a research project within SWIRL which is investigating the effects of the human endocannabinoids, 2-arachidonylglycerol and anandamide, and phytocannabinoids such as cannabidiol on Lumbriculus variegatus. While conventional invertebrate models, such as C. elegans and Drosophila, lack an endocannabinoid system the annelid worms are known to express cannabinoid receptor homologs (Salzet & Stefano, 2002), and so L. variegatus is a valuable tool in unravelling the underlying physiology and pharmacology of the endocannabinoid system. 

STONED aims to examine the behavioural effects of endo- and phytocannabinoids in L. variegatus. The current findings from this study to date are available from our 2025 publication, in Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry, entitled "The behavioral, physiological, and biochemical responses of Lumbriculus variegatus exposed to cannabidiol and its metabolites".