Medicinal Cannabis: Phytochemistry and Biotechnological Advances
A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Phytochemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 1348
Special Issue Editors
2. Department of BioMolecular Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA
Interests: Cannabis sativa; cannabis genomics; cannabis chemovars; phytocannabinoids; cannabis horticulture
2. Department of BioMolecular Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA
Interests: cannabis germplasm; biotechnology; in vitro conservation; micropropagation; cryopreservation
2. Department of Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA
Interests: Cannabis sativa; phytocannabinoids; tetrahydrocannabinol (THC); cannabidiol (CBD); drug development
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Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Since ancient times, various forms of cannabis have been employed for their medicinal properties. Cannabis contains over 500 identified constituents, with cannabinoids representing the most significant class. Among these, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are the two primary naturally occurring cannabinoids, exhibiting highly different pharmacological profiles and considerable therapeutic potential. Following the discovery of Δ9-THC, the principal psychoactive component of cannabis, research largely focused on Δ9-THC and its derivatives. Cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive compound discovered before Δ9-THC, received relatively little attention for many years. Recently, however, interest in CBD and CBD-rich cannabis varieties has surged due to their therapeutic promise in treating a range of conditions, including childhood epilepsy (such as Dravet syndrome) and other disorders.
Despite its long history of medicinal use, cannabis was classified as a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act for many years—a status it still retains. However, on December 18, 2025, the President of the United States signed an executive order to ease restrictions on cannabis for legitimate medical use. The order will expedite the reclassification of cannabis from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug. In parallel with these federal developments, the enactment of medical marijuana laws in many U.S. states and around the world has renewed interest in the medicinal value of cannabis, and many cannabis-derived products are now widely available for public use. Therefore, it is important for growers, processors, and healthcare providers to have a good understanding of this plant, including the production of biomass consistent in secondary metabolites using both traditional and advanced biotechnological methods, its constituents, and the complexity of its chemistry.
This Special Issue explores the cannabis plant, its chemistry, the biotechnological approaches involved in its propagation and processing, and its evolving role as a recognized botanical drug and/or phytopharmaceutical agent.
Prof. Dr. Suman Chandra
Prof. Dr. Hemant Lata
Prof. Dr. Mahmoud A. ElSohly
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- cannabis genomics
- cannabis chemovars
- cannabis biotechnology
- germplasm conservation
- micropropagation
- cryopreservation
- cannabinoid biosynthesis
- phytocannabinoids
- endocannabinoid system
- drug development
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