PHAR 201 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Psychoactive Drug, Cannabinol, Herbaceous Plant
16 Dec 2015
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Document Summary
Provide an overview of the characteristics of the varieties of cannabis. Cannabis = genus of an annual herbaceous plant. Grown in temperate and tropical climates: indica. Seeds, leaves, plants have a small amount of psycho- chemicals. Useful for non- pharmacological uses (famously, as a fabric) Legal in canada, but commonly associated with its cousin, indica. Resin from flowering tops and sprouts, 10x concentration of marijuana. ~80 known cannabinoids, but the two of notes are tetrahydrocannabinol (thc) and cannabinol. Thc is the only psychoactive constituent, but cannabinol also has some physiological effects (only a bit of overlap with thc; different mechanism of action?) Discuss the pharmacology of cannabis & cannabinoids. Multiple strains/cross-breeds: 15-fold changes in thc in stains over last 30 years invalidates our little prior research. Variations in cannabinoid content: thc: cannabinol prevalent studied ratio of eyes) Effects on mood: feelings of euphoria/relaxation/well- being, decreases in anxiety/tension/alertness, similar to ethanol but w/o aggression.
