Ricerc@Sapienza

The use of Cannabis sativa is always been quite controversial: it can have beneficial health effects for several pathologies, be an environmentally friendly raw material for manufacturing and textiles, but it is also the most widely spread illicit drug in the world. However, the recent discovery of the endocannabinoid system, generated an increasing interest for this plant in the pharmaceutical and therapeutic fields. In fact, Cannabis produce a class of terpenophenolic compounds called phytocannabinoids, of which the most abundant and intoxicating psychoactive is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Another important phytocannabinoid is cannabidiol (CBD), able to contrast the psychoactive effects of THC. Based on their THC and CBD content, the numerous strains of C. sativa are distinguished into drug-type, with high THC content, and fibre-type or hemp, with CBD as the main phytocannabinoid. Besides these two compounds, more than 100 other phytocannabinoids have been identified to date.
The objective of this proposal is the comprehensive identification of phytocannabinoids in industrial hemp. In general, most of the studies profiling phytocannabinoids published in the literature report only the major constituents. However, it has been demonstrated that low-abundance cannabinoids could play a crucial role in determining the pharmaceutical properties of Cannabis and its derivatives.
For this reason, inflorescence and other aerial parts of hemp of different strains and grown in different conditions will be analyzed and compared for their phytocannabinoid profile by high resolution mass spectrometry, using a suspect screening approach.
If the analytical platform will be successful, it could be possible the identification of novel bioactive compounds from industrial hemp. Furthermore, a comparative analysis of samples could allow a better understanding of the most bioactive strains of C. sativa or the finest pedoclimatic conditions for its cultivation.