Researchers photograph active ingredient in cannabis plants
Wednesday, April 17, 2013 - 09:00
in Biology & Nature
Researchers from the University of Twente's MESA+ and MIRA research institutes have succeeded in visualizing THC, the active ingredient of cannabis, in intact plant structures. The substance is mainly found in trichomes (fine outgrowths) and in the small leaves around the flowers of the cannabis plant. Little or no THC is present in the stems and flowers. While these findings are not new, the study carried out by these researchers has shown their method (hyperspectral CARS Microscopy) to be a powerful tool for investigating the medicinal properties of plants. An article describing this research was published today in a scientific journal, the Journal of Biomedical Optics.