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Neuroscientists' concerns about using cannabis during pregnancy stem from the fact that,
神經科學家的對孕期使用大麻的擔憂源于這樣一個事實，
in developing brains, the endocannabinoid system directs cell growth,
在發育的大腦中，內源性大麻素系統指導這細胞增長、
the differentiation of neurons and the way in which neurons grow, form junctions with each other and are pruned.
神經元的分化以及神經元生長、與彼此形成連接以及被修剪的方式。
Dr Melis administered low doses of THC (equivalent to a single, mild joint) to pregnant rats.
Melis博士給懷孕老鼠注射了低劑量的THC（相當于一根溫和的大麻煙卷）。
She then looked at the behaviour and neurobiology of the offspring. One test happened in the third and fourth week after birth.
然后她觀察了它們后代的行為和神經。其中一次測試發生在出生后的第三周和第四周。
A second was when the animals were older—an age roughly equivalent to the period just before adolescence in humans.
第二次是在動物更大一點的時候—這個年齡大致相當于人類進入青春期之前的時期。
Before the second test, the youngsters were given a dose of THC.
在開始第二次試驗之前，小老鼠被注射了一劑量的THC。
Dr Melis found that exposing rat embryos to THC rewired the part of the brain that handles reward and motivation—but only in males.
Melis博士發現將老鼠胚胎暴露在THC環境中，大腦中負責獎勵和激勵的部分會重新連接起來，但這只發生在雄性老鼠身上。
Neurons in this area were more excitable than those in control animals when stimulated by dopamine,
當受到多巴胺（在神經元之間傳遞信息的化學物質）的刺激時，這個區域的神經會比對照組
another chemical that carries messages between neurons. They also fired off their electrical impulses at a higher frequency.
老鼠這個區域的神經更加興奮。它們還以更高的頻率發射電脈沖。
In people, says Dr Melis, hyperactive dopamine neurons of this sort are a feature of vulnerability
Melis博士表示，對人類而言，這種極度活躍的多巴胺神經元是一系列精神疾病
to a range of psychiatric disorders that include schizophrenia, mania and drug addiction.
的易感性特征，包括精神分裂癥、狂躁癥和藥物成癮。
Another effect that Dr Melis detected was impaired "sensorimotor gating".
Melis博士檢測到的另一個影響是“感覺運動門控”受損。
This is the way that a brain filters out superfluous information and prevents an overload of data.
這是大腦過濾掉多余信息并防止數據過載的方法。
These underlying neurological changes did not, however, manifest themselves immediately as changes in behaviour.
然而，這些潛在的神經變化并沒有立即表現為行為上的變化。
Instead, the rats concerned acted normally until given their preadolescence doses of THC.
相反，這些老鼠的行為都很正常，直到注射了青春期前劑量的THC。
At this point their behaviour changed, as they became hyperactive and increasingly likely to take risks.
在這個時候，它們的行為發生了變化，它們變得亢奮，冒險的可能性增加。
Though it is sometimes hard to translate work done on rodents to human beings—particularly in this case,
盡管有時很難將在嚙齒動物身上完成的工作轉化到人類身上—尤其是在這種情況中，
when only males seem affected—Dr Melis's findings lend support to the conclusions of observational studies
似乎僅有雄性受到了影響—Melis博士的發現為觀察性研究的結論提供了支持，
which suggest that prenatal exposure to cannabis leads to increased susceptibility to a range of mental health problems.
這些研究表明，產前接觸大麻會導致換上一系列精神健康問題可能性增加。
There was one intriguing positive finding.
還有一個有趣的積極發現。
The authors were able to correct their rats' behavioural and neurological abnormalities by dosing them with pregnenolone,
作者們可以通過給老鼠服用孕烯酮來糾正它們的行為和神經異常，
a drug currently undergoing tests for the treatment of cannabis addiction, schizophrenia, autism and bipolar disorder.
孕烯酮是一種目前正在接受測試的藥物，可用于治療大麻成癮、精神分裂癥、自閉癥和雙相情感障礙。
But the long and short of the work done thus far is that consuming cannabis during pregnancy is far from safe.
但到目前為止，所做的工作中有一點值得注意，那就是在懷孕期間服用大麻是很不安全的。
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