{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,3]],"date-time":"2026-04-03T06:29:59Z","timestamp":1775197799560,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]],"date-time":"2026-03-31T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1774915200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Molecules"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Introduction and Aim: Assessment of antitumor activity in preclinical models remains challenging when relying solely on conventional size-based imaging, particularly for complex agents such as cannabinoids, whose biological effects may not translate into early volumetric tumor changes. Cannabinoid formulations, including the synthetic cannabinoid JWH-182, Cannabixir\u00ae Medium dried flowers, and Cannabixir\u00ae THC full extract, exhibit diverse and potentially subtle effects on tumor biology. Radiomics enables high-throughput extraction of quantitative imaging features that capture intratumoral heterogeneity beyond gross tumor volume. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of MRI-based radiomics as a sensitive tool for detecting cannabinoid-associated tumor phenotypic modulation in a preclinical breast cancer model. Methods: Orthotopic breast tumors were induced in mice using the 4T1 cell line. Animals received cannabinoid formulations in combination with chemotherapy according to a predefined protocol. Tumor burden was assessed at baseline and post-treatment using ultrasonography and whole-body MRI to calculate tumor doubling time. T1- and T2-weighted MRI datasets were segmented and analyzed using radiomics to extract morphometric and signal-based features. Results: Conventional imaging revealed no significant differences in tumor doubling time between most cannabinoid-treated groups and controls, except for accelerated growth in animals treated with Cannabixir\u00ae THC full extract. In contrast, radiomics identified distinct, compound-specific tumor phenotypes, including structural features consistent with reduced aggressiveness, in JWH-182-treated tumors, despite similar volumetric growth patterns. Conclusion: MRI-based radiomics sensitively captures cannabinoid-associated tumor phenotype alterations beyond volumetric assessment, supporting its value as a pharmaco-imaging tool for characterizing treatment-related tumor biology in preclinical oncology.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules31071154","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]],"date-time":"2026-03-31T13:23:17Z","timestamp":1774963397000},"page":"1154","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["MRI-Based Radiomics Reveals Cannabinoid-Associated Tumor Phenotypes in a Murine Breast Cancer Model"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"31","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2631-7458","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ioana","family":"Creanga-Murariu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Research and Development Center for Experimental Medicine \u201cProf. Ostin C. Mungiu\u201d (CEMEX), Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Medical Oncology-Radiotherapy Department, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Medical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology, 700483 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1155-4634","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Cosmin-Vasilica","family":"Pricope","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Research and Development Center for Experimental Medicine \u201cProf. Ostin C. Mungiu\u201d (CEMEX), Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Medical Oncology-Radiotherapy Department, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Radiology Department, \u201cSfantul Spiridon\u201d Hospital, 700111 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5374-0908","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mitica","family":"Ciorpac","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Research and Development Center for Experimental Medicine \u201cProf. Ostin C. Mungiu\u201d (CEMEX), Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Debbie","family":"Anaby","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Ramat Gan 52621, Israel"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Kfir","family":"Cohen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Ramat Gan 52621, Israel"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7563-1267","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Cristina-Mariana","family":"Uritu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Research and Development Center for Experimental Medicine \u201cProf. Ostin C. Mungiu\u201d (CEMEX), Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-4734-4509","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andrei","family":"Szilagyi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Research and Development Center for Experimental Medicine \u201cProf. Ostin C. Mungiu\u201d (CEMEX), Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Raluca-Maria","family":"Gogu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Research and Development Center for Experimental Medicine \u201cProf. Ostin C. Mungiu\u201d (CEMEX), Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5515-6473","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Wael","family":"Jalloul","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biophysics and Medical Physics-Nuclear Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700489 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2673-6927","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Adriana-Elena","family":"Anita","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Regional Center of Advanced Research for Emerging Diseases, Zoonoses and Food Safety, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ia\u0219i University of Life Sciences (IULS), 8 Mihail Sadoveanu Alley, 700489 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5463-6651","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Dragos-Constantin","family":"Anita","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Regional Center of Advanced Research for Emerging Diseases, Zoonoses and Food Safety, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ia\u0219i University of Life Sciences (IULS), 8 Mihail Sadoveanu Alley, 700489 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7054-4650","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Radu-Andrei","family":"Baisan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, \u201cIon Ionescu de la Brad\u201d Iasi University of Life Sciences, 700489 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2696-9568","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Teodora","family":"Alexa-Stratulat","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medical Oncology-Radiotherapy Department, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Department of Medical Oncology, Regional Institute of Oncology, 700483 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9868-1999","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Bogdan-Ionel","family":"Tamba","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Advanced Research and Development Center for Experimental Medicine \u201cProf. Ostin C. Mungiu\u201d (CEMEX), Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania"},{"name":"Medical Oncology-Radiotherapy Department, Grigore T. 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