Brief History of Cannabidiol
- Cannabis has been cultivated for its medicinal, psychoactive, and physical properties for thousands of years
- The earliest recorded medicinal uses of the plant date as far back as 1400-2000 BC
- In the 19th century, William Osler, M.D., considered to be a “Father of Modern Medicine”, was a proponent of the medicinal use of cannabis
- CBD was first discovered by Dr. Roger Adams and his team at the University of Illinois in 1940 but it’s chemical structure wasn’t elucidated until 1963
- Dr. Raphael Mechoulam, considered the ‘Father of Cannabis Research’, is recognized for this, as well as the isolation of THC and discovery of the brain’s endogenous cannabinoid
- While CBD was discovered more than 20 years earlier, THC has dominated cannabis research until recently
Cannabinoids
- There are 2 primary, endogenous endocannabinoids: anandamide (AEA), taken from the Sanskrit word ananda, which means “joy, bliss” and 2-arachidonyl glycerol (2-AG)
- Cannabinoids exert their activity via a specific system of cellular receptors widely distributed throughout the body referred to as the endocannabinoid system
- THC and CBD, are the most abundant of the > 80 active exogenous cannabinoids within the cannabis plant, collectively referred to as phytocannabinoids
- Phytocannabinoid pharmacology is still not completely understood, but there appears to be a balancing effect between THC and CBD
