Genetic Engineering May Create More Effective Cannabis Varieties
Could GMO cannabis be the next big thing?
Cannabis has been increasing in popularity, both as a recreational drug and an alternative medicine. But one challenge that impacts both those who are selling cannabis, and those consuming it, is lack of consistency. Cannabis has countless varieties, each with a different combination of chemical compounds, which can impact cannabis’ effects. Genetics and the environment in which the cannabis is grown can have big impacts on the resulting cannabis. This means that brands have a hard time keeping consistency in their products, and consumers have a hard time consistently finding products that give the effects they are looking for.
But a recent comprehensive scientific review suggests that biotechnological tools, such as genetic engineering, tissue culture and molecular breeding, may help produce cannabis varieties that are more stable and more tailored to specific medicinal needs.
One potential use for this kind of technology would be producing cannabis with specific cannabinoids. Traditional growing methods can be unpredictable when it comes to what cannabinoids will be produced by a plant. While genetics plays some role, it’s also true that the environment and style of growing can be a big factor in what cannabinoids are present. And the different cannabinoids each have distinct effects, so not being able to control the cannabinoids that emerge limits the ability to grow cannabis varieties for specific needs.
The difficulty growing cannabis with consistent cannabinoids also impacts hemp farmers, who are prohibited from growing hemp with certain levels of the psychoactive cannabinoid THC. If THC levels go too high, as sometimes happens because of the difficulty controlling THC levels, farmers may have to destroy their crops.
While previous methods have attempted to control for these issues, they remain big challenges in the cannabis industry. Still, this review highlighted a recently emerged technique known as base editing. This method has the potential to customize alleles and create mutations that may create new or improved functions from cannabinoids. These may also help to genetically manipulate the biosynthesis of cannabinoids, allowing researchers to increase or decrease the amount of cannabinoids like THC or CBD. This could lead to more stability in terms of which cannabinoids develop during the growth process for particular cannabis varieties. Not only would this allow for the development of more consistent strains with more consistent effects, but it could also help reduce the need for destroying crops in the hemp industry.
In addition, this technique, if properly executed, may even be able to improve cannabis yields. This would be a big boon for those in the cannabis industry, and could ultimately reduce cost for consumers.
While the research is still in early phases, the authors conclude that “As our understanding of cannabis genetics and biotechnological tools advances, we can anticipate more effective and sustainable approaches for producing cannabis with specific characteristics, all while navigating the complexities of the modern cannabis industry.“
Still, it’s important to note that some have worries about the potential impacts of genetically modifying cannabis and its cannabinoids. Some argue that it is possible that making these changes could lead to unintended or even dangerous effects for those using the GMO cannabis - similar to how we see worse impacts from certain synthetic cannabinoids. Only time and more research will tell us whether GMO cannabis is a helpful or harmful way to produce cannabis.
