Cannabis Overview

Cannabis is well known for its psychoactive effects, causing temporary changes in visual and auditory perception.

The cannabis plant is also a rich source of medicinal compounds. Cannabinoids related to THC exert medicinal action through the endocannabinoid system — a critical component of homeostasis.

Many of these cannabinoids aren't psychoactive, and wont produce the 'high' associated with the plant in their isolated forms.

Compounds like CBD, have become especially popular as a supplement recently for its broad medicinal benefits.

There are plenty of uses for cannabis — however, product selection, strain choice, and cannabinoid profiles make a big difference in the effects produced by the plant. It's important to use the right type of cannabis for the job.

The Cannabinoids:

Cannabinoids are a class of phytochemical compounds resembling the structure of our naturally occurring ecosanoid endocannabinoids; anandamide, and 2-AG. There are roughly 66 of these compounds in the cannabis plant, and a few found in other species of plants as well — such as helichrysum and echinacea.

Although the cannabinoids are very similar, their binding activity varies a lot [14]. Some bind to CB1 receptors (located primarily in the central nervous system), others bind to CB2 receptors (found primarily in immune tissue). Some cannabinoids will even bind to both, or work by increasing the concentrations of naturally occurring endocannabinoids instead.

Due to the wide range of variability between each cannabinoid, it’s useful to go over them in greater detail individually.

1. CBC

Cannabichromene

CBC is the third most abundant cannabinoid in the cannabis plant.

It’s non-psychoactive.

CBC is far less studied than the two preceding cannabinoids CBD, and THC, though early research is starting to suggest it’s even better for treating conditions like anxiety than the famed CBD.

CBC content can be increased in the cannabis plant by inducing light-stress on the plant [5].

CBC Medicinal Actions

• Antidepressant

• Mild sedative

Receptors Affected

• Vanilloid receptor agonist (TRPV3 and TRPV4) [4]

2. CBD

Cannabidiol

In many cases, CBD is the most abundant cannabinoid. Only selectively bred cannabis strains will have higher THC concentrations than CBD.

CBD is famed for many reasons. It offers a wide range of medicinal benefits, and has been well-studied and validated over the past two decades.

CBD oils, e-liquids, and edibles have become highly popular in recent years as more of this research is being released and translated for the general public.

CBD Medicinal Actions

• Antinflammatory

• Mild appetite suppressant

• Lowers stress

• Adaptogenic

• Mild sedative

• Anti-emetic

Receptors Affected

• Adenosine (A2a) reuptake inhibitor [6]

• Vanilloid pain receptors (TRPV1, TRPV2, TRPV3) [7]

• 5HT1A receptor agonist (serotonin receptor) [6]

• FAAH (–) [6, 7]

• PPARγ nuclear receptor (+) [48]

• Mg2+‐ATPase (−) [11]

• Arylalkylamine N‐acetyltransferase (−) [44]

• Indoleamine‐2,3‐dioxygenase (−) [45]

• 15‐lipoxygenase (−) [46]

• Phospholipase A2 (+) [11]

• Glutathione peroxidase (+) [47]

• Glutathione reductase (+) [47]

• 5‐lipoxygenase (−) [46]

Metabolism

• CYP1A1 (−) [40]

• CYP1A2 & CYP1B1 (−) [40]

• CYP2B6 (−) [41]

• CYP2D6 (−) [42]

• CYP3A5 (−) [43]

3. CBG

Cannabigerol

CBG is an early precursor for many of the other cannabinoids including THC.

Plants harvested early will be high in this compound.

Many users report that strains high in CBG are less likely to cause anxiety, and are good for people experiencing acute stress.

This is likely due to its role in blocking the serotonergic effects of THC through the 5-HT1A serotonin receptors [9].

CBG Medicinal Actions

• Anti-anxiety

• Adaptogenic

• Mild sedative

Receptors Affected

• A2-adrenoceptor antagonist [9]

• CB1 and CB2 receptors agonist [9]

• 5-HT1A receptors antagonist (serotonin receptor) [9]

• Vanilloid receptor agonist (TRPA1) [8]

• TRPM8 receptor antagonist [8]

4. CBN

Cannabinol

CBN is made from THC. As THC content breaks down with time, or heat, CBN levels increase overall.

Older harvested plants that have gone past their window of ripeness will be much higher in CBN.

It’s mostly non-psychoactive but may have some mild psychoactivity in some people.

Products or strains high in CBN will produce more of a heavy feeling and are best used for treating conditions like insomnia or anxiety.

This cannabinoid is potentially the most sedative of the group.

CBN Medicinal Actions

• Sedative

• Anti-anxiety

• Appetite stimulant

Receptors Affected

• CB1 receptor agonist [10].

Metabolism

• CYP2C9

5. THC

Tetrahydrocannabinol

THC is the main psychoactive compound in the cannabis plant.

There are two main types:

• Delta-8-THC — contained in very small amounts

• Delta-9-THC — the most abundant form of THC in the cannabis plant

THC activates both CB1 and CB2 endocannabinoid receptors, causing changes in neurotransmitters like dopamine, norepinephrine, and most importantly, serotonin. It’s this change in neurotransmitter levels that produce the bulk of the high experienced by this compound.

Aside from its psychoactive effects, THC has medicinal benefits of its own.

It’s mentally stimulating and has some potent antidepressant effects through its euphoric effects.

THC Medicinal Actions

• Appetite stimulant

• Sedative (low doses)

• Stimulant (high doses)

Receptors Affected

• CB1 and CB2 agonist [11]

• PPAR gamma receptor agonist [11, 15].

Metabolism

• CYP2C9

6. THCV

Tetrahydrocannabivarin

THCV is the fraternal twin of THC.

It’s virtually identical except for one slight chemical difference — THCV is missing two carbon atoms.

This makes the effects of THCV very similar to THC — but is much weaker in its effects.

One study reported THCV as being 20-25% as strong as THC in its psychoactive effects [12].

There are others affected by this, including CBCV, and CBDV, though they are in far less concentrations.

THCV Medicinal Actions

• Appetite suppressant

• Euphoric

• Antispasmodic

• Paranoic

Receptors Affected

• Vanilloid receptor agonist (TRPV3 and TRPV4) [13].

7. Other Cannabinoids

There are also a lot of cannabinoids that can be found in much lower concentrations.

These make up the bottom 5% of the cannabinoid profile.

Few of these cannabinoids have many studies on them aside from chemical mapping to identify their structure.

We may see more research on these cannabinoids in the near future.

Some Novel Cannabinoids Include:

• CBCV (cannabichromevarin)

• CBDV (cannabidivarin)

• CBE (cannabielsoin)

• CBGM (cannabigerol monomethyl ether)

• CBGV (cannabigerovarin)

• CBL (cannabicyclol)

• CBT (cannabicitran)

• CBV (cannabivarin)

A Note On Synthetic Cannabinoids

There are also synthetic cannabinoids. These are compounds that are similar in shape and function to cannabinoids produced in our bodies, or in the cannabis plant.

It’s recommended that you stay far away from the synthetic cannabinoids — not only do they lack many of the medicinal actions of cannabis, they have the potential to cause serious harm.

The street drug known as “spice” is a combination of various synthetic cannabinoids. They were designed as an attempt to circumvent the legal hurdles preventing the sale of cannabis products for recreational use — and have since become a major cause of addiction and abuse.

Cannabis Terpenes

Terpenes are a class of compounds characterized by their volatile nature, and hydrocarbon-based structure. These are contained in high amounts in the essential oil of plants.

Terpenes have a very low molecular weight, and will evaporate under low temperatures. This, combined with their characteristic aromas is what gives many plants their scent. Conifer trees, fruits, and many flowers (including cannabis) all owe their aroma to their terpene profile.

Each plant can contains hundreds of different terpenes — many of which will even overlap into unrelated plant species. Cannabis shares terpenes with pine trees, many different flowers, citrus fruits, and nutmeg, among others.

Terpenes add flavor as well as additional medicinal benefits. Terpenes often have antibacterial, antiviral, antinflammatory, and anxiolytic effects.

Pharmacokinetics/Pharmacodynamics

Cannabinoids work by mimicking the endocannabinoids anandamide and 2-AG.

Learn more about cannabinoid metabolism.

What Constitutes “Medicinal” Cannabis?

There’s a big difference between using cannabis because “it’s healthy”, and using it as a therapeutic agent aimed at treating a specific disease process.

Although it can be used as both, daily supplementing cannabis or extracts like CBD don’t constitute medical cannabis.

However, you can use cannabis to address the symptoms, or underlying causes for some conditions.

Author

Justin Cooke, BHSc

The Sunlight Experiment

(Updated Jan 2019)

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