marijuana

Podcast: CRISPR-edited weed; opioid addiction vaccine; Africa’s neglected diseases
An opioid-blocking vaccine could spare many people a lifetime of drug addiction, if and when it's developed. COVID-19 exposed Africa's ...

CRISPR for cannabis: Gene-edited, disease-resistant marijuana poised for 2021 debut
Israeli startup CanBreed said it has reached a licensing agreement to use gene editing tools to provide cannabis growers with ...

How beer brewers and marijuana growers are teaming up to help address the climate crisis
The state of Colorado and three small businesses are trying a novel approach to reduce carbon emissions that sounds like ...

‘What’s in my weed?’ Organic certification for cannabis coming soon
Do you know what’s in your weed? For the majority of cannabis consumers, the answer is a resounding no—despite claims ...

Biotech marijuana: Israeli startups aim to breed cannabis plant that’s easier to cultivate
Israeli medical cannabis company Cann10 has signed an agreement to team up with Israeli biotech company Epigenetics to form Cann10 ...

How a ‘dubious’ 50-year-old study fuels marijuana use by pregnant women—against the advice of health experts
Social media users extol — and health experts decry — a study from Jamaica suggesting cannabis use poses no harm ...

Viewpoint: Our efforts to learn more about cannabis benefits, risks are hampered by federal research barriers
As cannabis researchers, we work in a field whose unknowns could positively or negatively affect the health of millions of ...

We have a marijuana shortage. Bioengineered yeast could solve that problem.
Yeast are the linchpin of the beer and wine markets. So why not marijuana? ...

World’s first GMO marijuana plant targets drinkable market
Well, after years of sensationalist false alarms, it’s finally here: genetically modified cannabis for the commercial market. Created by Trait ...

Is ‘Big Ag’ getting into the cannabis business?
When Mowgli Holmes and his childhood friend Nishan Karassik founded Phylos Bioscience in 2014 they had one major goal: to ...

Viewpoint: Evidence for CBD oil as a miracle cure-all ‘isn’t impressive at all’
Cannabidiol (CBD) oil is everywhere and seemingly in everything these days. It’s touted as a panacea for a massive range ...

Pot smokers with this genetic variant could face addiction risks similar to those who smoke cigarettes
Back in the 1960s and 1970s, for those of us who can remember them, marijuana was widely regarded as not ...

Synthetic biology could outperform plants at producing marijuana components. But obstacles remain.
Using the tools of synthetic biology, innovators are making a bold move into the cannabinoid industry, particularly as cannabinoids are ...

Can you become addicted to pot? This gene increases your risk.
Danish researchers have for the first time identified a gene that increases the risk for cannabis use disorder. About 10 ...

Legalizing pot won’t slow the opioid epidemic, study suggests
Nearly five years ago, a team of researchers performing a study on medical cannabis came to a startling conclusion: The ...

Marijuana compound CBD could help people fight opioid addiction
A new study out [May 21] is the latest to suggest that cannabis—or at least a key ingredient of it—might ...

Why biotech firms are jumping into the cannabis business
As biotechnology embraces the legal cannabis industry, not a few of its executives are grappling with a dilemma: what will ...

Dissecting the cannabis genome in the quest for a better bud and effective medicines
Cannabis cultivators have little firm knowledge about the genetics of the plant. Researchers hope to change that ...

Taking a bad trip and why marijuana edibles may be a prescription for psychosis
A study looked at high-potency cannabis and psychosis. The findings were astonishing ...

Creating rare marijuana compounds with GM yeast could lead to a ‘blockbuster drug or two’
[Genetically modified brewer’s yeast] is churning out cannabinoids, the compounds found in marijuana. Researchers led by Jay Keasling, a professor ...

Brewer’s yeast could be used to produce rare cannabis-derived compounds that treat anxiety, pain
The yeast that people have used for millennia to brew alcoholic drinks has now been engineered to produce cannabinoids — ...

Breaking down the ‘scientific and statistical sins’ behind reporting on marijuana science
A new book and New Yorker feature are filled with cherry-picked data, oversimplified studies, and scientific errors ...

Marijuana is an ancient plant, but we’re only beginning to unravel its DNA
For a plant humans have grown and transported around the world for thousands of years—utilizing its precious seeds, flowers, resin, ...

Marijuana and mental health: It’s not ‘strictly helpful or harmful’
The exciting news about the complexity of cannabis is that it holds much promise as a potential medicine for many ...

Smoking pot while pregnant increases health risks, including depression and drug abuse, for offspring
Various large-scale longitudinal research projects in both North America and Europe, ranging from several hundred to thousands of subjects, on ...

Brains of fetuses could suffer from exposure to marijuana
Marijuana has been legalized in some capacity in 31 U.S. states, in large part due to a softening stance around ...

Why marijuana might not be such a great weapon to fight opioid addiction
The opioid crisis is an ongoing national tragedy. One commonly suggested response is cannabis. But emerging state and national statistics ...

Good news for young pot-muddled brains. Study shows impairment is reversible
Taking a monthlong break from pot helps clear away young people’s memory fog, a small study suggests. The results show ...