Scientists Identify Viroid-Resistant Purple Cannabis Strain

As humans battle the novel coronavirus, cannabis plants face an equally devastating threat. hop latent viroid (HLVd) is a viroid that occurs worldwide in hops, but has proliferated in cannabis in recent years, destroying THC yields in infected plants.

sci-fi gate report Scientists at Massachusetts-based Medicinal Genomics have observed that the cannabis strain Jamaican Lion appears to be partially resistant to HLVd, turning purple when it fights the viroid. bottom.

Presented by Kevin McKernan, Chief Scientific Officer for Medical Genomics “Hop latent viroids share a 19-nucleotide sequence with cannabis COG7” and Kanmed 23 At the Marriott Resort on Marco Island, Florida. The late Raphael Mechoulam was originally scheduled to speak at the event alongside leaders in cannabis science such as Ethan Russo, MD. Bonnie Goldstein, MD. Debra Kimles. others.

The Jamaican lion strain appeared to be viroid-resistant and kept turning purple when fighting the viroid. Jamaican Lion is an award-winning CBD-rich breed.

Viroids can be spread by biological routes and can also be spread by growers through contact or equipment. Sterilization with a 10% bleach solution can reduce infection. The scientists infected the viroid by rubbing it directly onto the plant’s cut leaves, and then injected the plant with the viroid. After 6 weeks, this plant cultivar remained free of infection after 57 repetitions of the test. The researchers were able to detect HLVd in plant roots, but leaf and flower tissues tested negative until harvest.

“I don’t know why [this is happening].This could be an immune response, but this has not been confirmed [purple coloring] We see a significant increase in uninfected controls,” McKernan said.

Effects of HLVd viroids on plants

HLVd causes the plants to have smaller flowers and significantly less THC. When viewed under an electron microscope, mature trichomes, where most of the THC resides, look like deflated balloons instead of the usual ball shape.Studies show that 90% of cannabis in California is infected with HLVd and costs up to $4 billion yield loss. Viroids are bad news for cannabis, but since viroids only infect plants, they pose no physical danger to humans.

It is not immediately clear why the plant became resistant to viroids. McKernan said the purple color came from increased production of anthocyanins, the chemicals that turn plants purple. The researchers believe that anthocyanin production is already implicated in fighting viroids, so scientists should start figuring out if there are other purple plants that are resistant to HLVd. .

Cannabis varieties may help save pot farms. “There is literature linking anthocyanin production with viroid infection, which occurs in different plants, different viroids, but these anthocyanins are known immune responses in plants,” McKernan said. Said sci-fi gate.

McKernan turned to cannabis to fight his father’s stage 4 prostate cancer. He used expert guidance from Mechoulam, Goldstein, Kimreth and others to maximize the health benefits of cannabinoids.

Zamir K. Panja said at the meeting HLVd should be considered a “significant threat” to cannabis farms, he said. Panja calls HLVd “the novel coronavirus of the cannabis world.” Research shows that THC yields from infected plants can be reduced by up to 40%, which is bad news for cannabis farms.

A long-term solution for medicinal genomics in the fight against HLVd is to breed resistant cultivars (perhaps some purple cultivars) that do not result in yield or potency loss.