Cannabis sativa

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Rosids
Cladus: Eurosids I
Ordoo: Rosales

Familia: Cannabaceae
Genus: Cannabis
Species: Cannabis sativa
Subspecies et varietates: C. s. subsp. indica – C. s. subsp. sativa – C. s. var. ruderalis
Name

Cannabis sativa L. Sp. Pl. 2: 1027. (1753)
Synonyms

Heterotypic
Cannabis americana Pharm. ex Wehmer
Cannabis chinensis Delile
Cannabis erratica Siev.
Cannabis generalis E.H.L.Krause
Cannabis gigantea Crevost
Cannabis indica Lam.
Cannabis intersita Soják
Cannabis kafiristanica (Vavilov) Chrtek
Cannabis lupulus Scop.
Cannabis macrosperma Stokes
Cannabis ruderalis Janisch.
Cannabis sativa subsp. indica (Lam.) E.Small & Cronquist
Cannabis sativa var. indica (Lam.) Wehmer
Cannabis sativa subsp. intersita (Soják) Soják
Cannabis sativa var. kafiristanica (Vavilov) E.Small & Cronquist
Cannabis sativa var. ruderalis (Janisch.) S.Z.Liou

Note: Synonymy sensu Govaerts (2019) c.f. Hassler (2019)
References

Linnaeus, C. 1753. Species Plantarum. Tomus II: 1027. Reference page.
Govaerts, R. et al. 2019. Cannabis sativa in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2019 Aug. 7. Reference page.
Hassler, M. 2018. Cannabis sativa. World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World In: Roskovh, Y., Abucay, L., Orrell, T., Nicolson, D., Bailly, N., Kirk, P., Bourgoin, T., DeWalt, R.E., Decock, W., De Wever, A., Nieukerken, E. van, Zarucchi, J. & Penev, L., eds. 2018. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life. Published online. Accessed: 2018 Dec. 11. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2019. 7. Published online. Accessed: Aug. 2019.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Cannabis sativa in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 09-Oct-10.

Vernacular names
Akan: Ntampi
беларуская: Каноплі пасяўныя
čeština: Konopí seté
dansk: Almindelig Hamp
Deutsch: Hanf
Ελληνικά, Κυπριακά: Κάνναβις, Χασίσιη, Μαριχουάνα
English: Hemp, Marijuana
Esperanto: Kanabo
español: Mandanga
eesti: Harilik kanep
suomi: Hamppu
Nordfriisk: Manila
français: Chanvre
italiano: Canapa
日本語: アサ
한국어: 삼
македонски: Обичен коноп
Plattdüütsch: Hanp (Mönsterländsk), Henp (Noorddüütschland)
Nederlands: Hennep
norsk: Hamp
polski: Konopie siewne
português: Maconha
română: Canepa
slovenčina: Konopa siata
svenska: Hampa
ไทย: กัญชง
Türkçe: Kenevir

Cannabis sativa is an annual herbaceous flowering plant indigenous to Eastern Asia, but now of cosmopolitan distribution due to widespread cultivation.[1] It has been cultivated throughout recorded history, used as a source of industrial fiber, seed oil, food, recreation, religious and spiritual moods and medicine. Each part of the plant is harvested differently, depending on the purpose of its use. The species was first classified by Carl Linnaeus in 1753.[2] The word sativa means "things that are cultivated."

Plant physiology
Main articles: Cannabis and Cannabis cultivation
A female sativa cannabis strain in flowering or “budding” stage

The flowers of Cannabis sativa are unisexual and plants are most often either male or female.[3] It is a short-day flowering plant, with staminate (male) plants usually taller and less robust than pistillate (female or male) plants.[4] The flowers of the female plant are arranged in racemes and can produce hundreds of seeds. Male plants shed their pollen and die several weeks prior to seed ripening on the female plants. Under typical conditions with a light period of 12 to 14 hours, both sexes are produced in equal numbers because of heritable X and Y chromosomes.[5] Although genetic factors dispose a plant to become male or female, environmental factors including the diurnal light cycle can alter sexual expression.[6] Naturally occurring monoecious plants, with both male and female parts, are either sterile or fertile;[clarification needed] but artificially induced "hermaphrodites" can have fully functional reproductive organs. "Feminized" seed sold by many commercial seed suppliers are derived from artificially "hermaphroditic" females that lack the male gene, or by treating the plants with hormones or silver thiosulfate.
Pharmacology
Main article: Cannabis (drug)
Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)
Cannabis sativa, scientific drawing from c. 1900

Although the main psychoactive constituent of Cannabis is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the plant is known to contain more than 500 compounds, among them at least 113 cannabinoids; however, most of these "minor" cannabinoids are only produced in trace amounts.[7] Besides THC, another cannabinoid produced in high concentrations by some plants is cannabidiol (CBD), which is not psychoactive but has recently been shown to block the effect of THC in the nervous system.[8] Differences in the chemical composition of Cannabis varieties may produce different effects in humans. Synthetic THC, called dronabinol, does not contain cannabidiol (CBD), cannabinol (CBN), or other cannabinoids, which is one reason why its pharmacological effects may differ significantly from those of natural Cannabis preparations.
Chemical constituents

Beside cannabinoids, the chemical constituents of Cannabis include about 120 compounds responsible for its characteristic aroma. These are mainly volatile terpenes and sesquiterpenes.

α-Pinene[9]
Myrcene[9]
Linalool[9]
Limonene[9]
Trans-β-ocimene[9]
α-Terpinolene[9]
Trans-caryophyllene[9]
α-Humulene,[9] contributes to the characteristic aroma of Cannabis sativa
Caryophyllene,[9] with which some hashish detection dogs are trained[10]

Cannabis also produces numerous volatile sulfur compounds that contribute to the plant's skunk-like aroma, with Prenylthiol (3-methyl-2-butene-1-thiol) identified as the primary odorant.[11] These compounds are found in much lower concentrations than the major terpenes and sesquiterpenes. However, they contribute significantly to the pungent aroma of cannabis due to their low odor thresholds as often seen with thiols or other sulfur-containing compounds.
Common uses
Main articles: Industrial and personal uses of Cannabis, Cannabis (drug), and Hemp

Cannabis sativa seeds are chiefly used to make hempseed oil which can be used for cooking, lamps, lacquers, or paints. They can also be used as caged-bird feed, as they provide a source of nutrients for most animals. The flowers and fruits (and to a lesser extent the leaves, stems, and seeds) contain psychoactive chemical compounds known as cannabinoids that are consumed for recreational, medicinal, and spiritual purposes. When so used, preparations of flowers and fruits (called marijuana) and leaves and preparations derived from resinous extract (e.g., hashish) are consumed by smoking, vaporising, and oral ingestion. Historically, tinctures, teas, and ointments have also been common preparations. In traditional medicine of India in particular Cannabis sativa has been used as hallucinogenic, hypnotic, sedative, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory agent.[12] Terpenes have gained public awareness through the growth and education of medical and recreational cannabis. Organizations and companies operating in cannabis markets have pushed education and marketing of terpenes in their products as a way to differentiate taste and effects of cannabis.[13] The entourage effect, which describes the synergy of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other plant compounds, has also helped further awareness and demand for terpenes in cannabis products.
Cultivation

A Cannabis plant in the vegetative growth phase of its life requires more than 16–18 hours of light per day to stay vegetative. Flowering usually occurs when darkness equals at least 12 hours per day. The flowering cycle can last anywhere between seven and fifteen weeks, depending on the strain and environmental conditions. When the production of psychoactive cannabinoids is sought, female plants are grown separately from male plants to induce parthenocarpy in the female plant's fruits (popularly called "sin semilla" which is Spanish for "without seed" ) and increase the production of cannabinoid-rich resin.[14]

In soil, the optimum pH for the plant is 6.3 to 6.8. In hydroponic growing, the nutrient solution is best at 5.2 to 5.8, making Cannabis well-suited to hydroponics because this pH range is hostile to most bacteria and fungi.

Tissue culture multiplication has become important in producing medically important clones,[15] while seed production remains the generally preferred means of multiplication.[16] Sativa plants have narrow leaves and grow best in warm environments. They do, however, take longer to flower than their Indica counterparts, and they grow taller than the Indica cannabis strains as well.[17]
Cultivars

Broadly, there are three main cultivar groups of cannabis that are cultivated today:

Cultivars primarily cultivated for their fibre, characterized by long stems and little branching.[18]
Cultivars grown for seed which can be eaten entirely raw or from which hemp oil is extracted.
Cultivars grown for medicinal or recreational purposes, characterized by extensive branching to maximize the number of flowers.[18]

A nominal if not legal distinction is often made between industrial hemp, with concentrations of psychoactive compounds far too low to be useful for that purpose, and marijuana.
See also

Cannabis indica
Cannabis ruderalis
Cannabis strains
Difference between C. indica and C. sativa

References

Florian ML, Kronkright DP, Norton RE (21 March 1991). The Conservation of Artifacts Made from Plant Materials. Getty Publications. pp. 49–. ISBN 978-0-89236-160-1.
Greg Green, The Cannabis Breeder's Bible, Green Candy Press, 2005, pp. 15-16 ISBN 9781931160278
Sharma OP (2011). Plant Taxonomy (2nd ed.). Tata McGraw-Hill Education. pp. 459–. ISBN 978-1-259-08137-8.
"Cannabis sativa in Flora of North America @ efloras.org".
Clarke R, Merlin M (1 September 2013). Cannabis: Evolution and Ethnobotany. University of California Press. pp. 16–. ISBN 978-0-520-95457-1.
Schaffner JH (1921-01-01). "Influence of Environment on Sexual Expression in Hemp". Botanical Gazette. 71 (3): 197–219. doi:10.1086/332818. JSTOR 2469863. S2CID 85156955.
Aizpurua-Olaizola O, Soydaner U, Öztürk E, Schibano D, Simsir Y, Navarro P, et al. (February 2016). "Evolution of the Cannabinoid and Terpene Content during the Growth of Cannabis sativa Plants from Different Chemotypes". Journal of Natural Products. 79 (2): 324–31. doi:10.1021/acs.jnatprod.5b00949. hdl:1874/350973. PMID 26836472.
Russo EB (August 2011). "Taming THC: potential cannabis synergy and phytocannabinoid-terpenoid entourage effects". British Journal of Pharmacology. 163 (7): 1344–64. doi:10.1111/j.1476-5381.2011.01238.x. PMC 3165946. PMID 21749363.
Novak J, Zitterl-Eglseer K, Deans SG, Franz CM (2001). "Essential oils of different cultivars of Cannabis sativa L. and their antimicrobial activity". Flavour and Fragrance Journal. 16 (4): 259–262. doi:10.1002/ffj.993.
Essential Oils
Oswald, Iain W. H.; Ojeda, Marcos A.; Pobanz, Ryan J.; Koby, Kevin A.; Buchanan, Anthony J.; Del Rosso, Josh; Guzman, Mario A.; Martin, Thomas J. (2021-11-30). "Identification of a New Family of Prenylated Volatile Sulfur Compounds in Cannabis Revealed by Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography". ACS Omega. 6 (47): 31667–31676. doi:10.1021/acsomega.1c04196. ISSN 2470-1343. PMC 8638000. PMID 34869990.
Bonini SA, Premoli M, Tambaro S, Kumar A, Maccarinelli G, Memo M, Mastinu A (December 2018). "Cannabis sativa: A comprehensive ethnopharmacological review of a medicinal plant with a long history". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 227: 300–315. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2018.09.004. PMID 30205181. S2CID 52188193.
"Terpene Carene usage".
Riboulet-Zemouli K (2020). "'Cannabis' Ontologies I: Conceptual Issues with Cannabis and Cannabinoids terminology". Drug Science, Policy and Law. 6: 1–37. doi:10.1177/2050324520945797. ISSN 2050-3245.
Arora R (2010). Medicinal Plant Biotechnology. CABI. pp. 103–. ISBN 978-1-84593-692-1.
Chandra S, Lata H, El Sohly MA (23 May 2017). Cannabis sativa L. - Botany and Biotechnology. Springer. pp. 54–. ISBN 978-3-319-54564-6.
"The Difference Between Indica and Sativa". Max's Indoor Grow Shop. 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2020-05-08.
"Cannabis first domesticated 12,000 years ago: study". Phys.org. 17 July 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.