Chapter 3
Cannabis sativaL.: Botany
and Horticulture
Suman Chandra, Hemant Lata, Ikhlas A. Khan
and Mahmoud A. ElSohly
Abstract As a plant,Cannabisis a highly variable species. It belongs to family
Cannabaceae. Whether the genusCannabiscontains one species or more has been a
matter of debate for a long time. The plant produces a unique class of terpenophenolic
compounds called cannabinoids. A total of 565Cannabisconstituents have been
isolated fromCannabis sativaso far, out of which 120 are phytocannabinoids. The
plant has gained a lot of popularity in the last few decades for not only being an illicit
drug but for its medicinal values from ancient times and a potential source for modern
drugs to treat several targets for human wellness. The pharmacologic and therapeutic
properties of preparations ofC. sativaandD^9 -THC, its most psychoactive compound,
have been extensively reviewed. An additional important cannabinoid inCannabisof
current interest is Cannabidiol (CBD) due to its reported activity as an antiepileptic
agent, particularly its promise for the treatment of intractable pediatric epilepsy.
Therefore, there is much interest in propagating compound based crops for medical
purposes. In this chapter, the focus is laid on the botanical aspects ofC. sativaand its
cultivation for phytopharmaceuticals.
S. ChandraH. LataI.A. KhanM.A. ElSohly
National Center for Natural Products Research,
Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy,
The University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA
I.A. Khan
Division of Pharmacognosy, Department of BioMolecular Sciences,
School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA
M.A. ElSohly (&)
Department of Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery, School of Pharmacy,
The University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA
e-mail: [email protected]
©Springer International Publishing AG 2017
S. Chandra et al. (eds.), Cannabis sativaL. - Botany and Biotechnology,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-54564-6_3
79