Kind: captions
Language: en
where did the cannabis we know today
come from
its wild beginnings remain unknown but
by looking at the plant's genes we can
identify its closest living relative
plant geneticists estimate that some 28
million years ago cannabis and hops
plants diverged today cannabis contains
special compounds called cannabinoids
molecules like thc which can make
someone high and cbd
which means that cannabinoids appeared
after cannabis split from hops we're not
sure if or how the evolution of these
compounds benefited cannabis
but they may have protected the plant
against uv light or kept it from being
eaten
whatever the reason humans took note and
started growing cannabis for different
uses
by studying the genes of over 100
different varieties of cannabis
geneticists estimate that around 12 000
years ago the wild cannabis plant broke
into two lineages one of which was
likely bred for crops and this crop
lineage split again about 4 000 years
ago into two more groups hemp plants
selected for fiber food and textiles in
a second group used for their
psychoactive properties
these two characteristics strong fibers
and psychoactive effects
are largely due to domestication and the
process of artificial selection which is
when certain traits are chosen by people
and reinforced through breeding
so
let's say they wanted to have a high thc
level on the plant so they were breeding
for a high thc or they wanted certain
colors so
that's how they were selecting for the
plants that we currently have in the
market and that have all those names
available
this kind of selective breeding which
started thousands of years ago continues
today
both the hemp and psychoactive varieties
belong to a single species
cannabis sativa
today federal law draws a distinction
between the two
the difference lies in their thc levels
hemp in the psychoactive varieties may
have some distinct physical features
that set them apart hemp is taller
fibrous and is less bushy than the
psychoactive plant
in recent years cannabis growers have
artificially selected and bred plants
with even higher amounts of thc
as a result today's cannabis may be far
more potent than its ancestor
or even the cannabis of a couple decades
ago
and now scientists have managed to
produce both thc and cbd without the
plant at all by genetically engineering
bacteria and yeast
i am wondering
how will governments and
legal institutions
look at this innovative aspect that we
do have in science and that is actually
growing big
in the industry completely replacing the
cannabis plant though is unlikely humans
have been cultivating it for thousands
of years and a relationship like that is
hard to break
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