title: Cannabis cultivation: Methodological issues for obtaining medical-grade product.
abstract: As studies continue to reveal favorable findings for the use of cannabidiol in the management of childhood epilepsy syndromes and other disorders, best practices for the large-scale production of Cannabis are needed for timely product development and research purposes. The processes of two institutions with extensive experience in producing large-scale cannabidiol chemotype Cannabis crops-GW Pharmaceuticals and the University of Mississippi-are described, including breeding, indoor and outdoor growing, harvesting, and extraction methods. Such practices have yielded desirable outcomes in Cannabis breeding and production: GW Pharmaceuticals has a collection of chemotypes dominant in any one of eight cannabinoids, two of which-cannabidiol and cannabidivarin-are supporting epilepsy clinical trial research, whereas in addition to a germplasm bank of high-THC, high-CBD, and intermediate type cannabis varieties, the team at University of Mississippi has established an in vitro propagation protocol for cannabis with no detectable variations in morphologic, physiologic, biochemical, and genetic profiles as compared to the mother plants. Improvements in phytocannabinoid yields and growing efficiency are expected as research continues at these institutions. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled "Cannabinoids and Epilepsy".
authors.affiliation: National Center for Natural Product Research, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, MS 38677, USA.
authors.forename: Suman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chandra
authors.affiliation: National Center for Natural Product Research, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, MS 38677, USA.
authors.forename: Hemant
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lata
authors.affiliation: National Center for Natural Product Research, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, MS 38677, USA; Department of Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery, School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, MS 38677, USA. Electronic address: melsohly@olemiss.edu.
authors.forename: Mahmoud A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: ElSohly
authors.affiliation: National Center for Natural Product Research, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, MS 38677, USA; Department of Biomolecular Sciences, School of Pharmacy, The University of Mississippi, P.O. Box 1848, MS 38677, USA.
authors.forename: Larry A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.affiliation: GW Pharmaceuticals plc, Sovereign House, Vision Park, Histon, Cambridge, CB24 9BZ, United Kingdom. Electronic address: djp@gwpharm.com.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Potter
mesh_terms: D000383:Agriculture / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D002188:Cannabis / Q000254:growth & development*; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D064086:Medical Marijuana / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010598:Pharmacognosy / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D008517:Phytotherapy / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D064086:Medical Marijuana; D010936:Plant Extracts
keywords: Cannabidiol; Cannabidivarin; Chemotype; Organogenesis; Pharmacognosy; Phytocannabinoid