Planta Med 2010; 76 - P13
DOI: 10.1055/s-0030-1251775

Variation in Δ9-THC and other Cannabinoids Content in Field Grown Cannabis sativa L. During Different Stages of Growth

S Chandra 1, Z Mehmedic 1, H Lata 1, IA Khan 1, 2, MA Elsohly 1, 3
  • 1National Center for Natural Products Research, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi, MS-38677, USA
  • 2Department of Pharmacognosy, University of Mississippi, MS-38677, USA
  • 3Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi, University, MS-38677, USA

In the present study, plants of Cannabis sativa L. were grown from seeds in the medicinal plant garden at the University of Mississippi, USA. Each seedling was tagged with a unique barcode to construct an accurate inventory of plants and to ensure the identity of each plant for further research. At the onset of flowering, all the male plants were removed from the field to avoid cross-pollinations and only female plants were kept for further cultivation. Among these plants, a few randomly selected healthy female plants from different plots were periodically analyzed for their cannabinoids content (Δ9-THC, THCV, CBD, CBC, CBG and CBN) through their different stages of growth and development (from seedling to harvest) using GC/FID. Based on variety differences and chromatographic analysis, plants were selected from four different groups i.e. plants having very high THC (VH, >12%), high THC (H, ˜8–12%), intermediate THC (INT, ˜5–8%) and low THC (L, <5%). In general, THC content increased with plant age up to a highest level during budding stage where the THC content reached a plateau for about a week before the plants were harvested. The changes in the concentration of other cannabinoids followed a similar pattern in some cases but show more variability depending on the variety. The results of this work were critical in selecting specific cultivars for future propagation depending on their chemical profile. Acknowledgement: This work was supported with federal funds from the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institute of Health (NIH), Department of Health and Human Services, USA, under the contract No. N01DA-7–7746.