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https://www.upi.com/Science_News/20...tion-in-marijuana-plants/5781543250571/?sl=16
By locating the genetic origins of the plant's various characteristics, researchers are making it easier for growers to breed varieties with exact levels of THC and CBD.
Nov. 26 (UPI) -- According to the first-ever cannabis chromosome map, the infusion of genes from invading viruses caused cannabis plants to evolve the bioactive compounds THC and CBD.
Marijuana and hemp are two chemically distinct varieties of the same species, Cannabis sativa. Marijuana contains elevated levels of the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, while hemp produces cannabidiol, or CBD, which is now being used to treat pain relief and anxiety.
By locating the genes responsible for these bioactive compounds within the cannabis chromosome, scientists gained a better understanding of when and how they evolved.
The enzymes that produce THC and CBD are encoded by synthase genes called THCA and CBDA. Both genes are located within the sixth of cannabis' ten chromosomes, and both are surrounded by large swaths of garbled genetic coding leftover from viruses that invaded the species' chromosome several million years ago.
===============================================
Fascinating interaction between very dissimilar organisms.
The publication of the first genome map for Cannabis will make it easier for growers to create new varieties with desired levels of THC & CBD.
By locating the genetic origins of the plant's various characteristics, researchers are making it easier for growers to breed varieties with exact levels of THC and CBD.
Nov. 26 (UPI) -- According to the first-ever cannabis chromosome map, the infusion of genes from invading viruses caused cannabis plants to evolve the bioactive compounds THC and CBD.
Marijuana and hemp are two chemically distinct varieties of the same species, Cannabis sativa. Marijuana contains elevated levels of the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, while hemp produces cannabidiol, or CBD, which is now being used to treat pain relief and anxiety.
By locating the genes responsible for these bioactive compounds within the cannabis chromosome, scientists gained a better understanding of when and how they evolved.
The enzymes that produce THC and CBD are encoded by synthase genes called THCA and CBDA. Both genes are located within the sixth of cannabis' ten chromosomes, and both are surrounded by large swaths of garbled genetic coding leftover from viruses that invaded the species' chromosome several million years ago.
===============================================
Fascinating interaction between very dissimilar organisms.
The publication of the first genome map for Cannabis will make it easier for growers to create new varieties with desired levels of THC & CBD.