ISSN: 0022-1198
CODEN: JFSCA
Published Online: 1 October 1979
Page Count: 3

Possible Characterization of Samples of Cannabis sativa L. by Their Carbon Isotopic Distributions
Liu, JH
Assistant professor, graduate student, and undergraduate student, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Ill.

Fitzgerald, MP

Saxena, SC
Professor, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Ill.

Lin, W-F
Assistant professor, graduate student, and undergraduate student, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Ill.

Shieh, YN
Assistant professor, Purdue University, Ind.

(Received 10 March 1979; accepted 13 April 1979)

Abstract

To achieve the ultimate goal in “individualizing” drug samples, qualitative and quantitative composition determinations are commonly used [1–5]. Based on quantitative analysis of major cannabinoids, pharmaceutical scientists [2,3] have concluded that Cannabis sativa L. can be chemically categorized into drug and fiber types. These investigators [2,3] further established that the phenotype of a plant is determined by the genetic origin of the seed, and the location of cultivation is irrelevant. On the other hand, according to geochemists, environmental factors seem to control isotope distribution in plants of the same species. Although the category of a plant is controlled by the adopted carbon fixation pathway [6–8], the carbon isotope ratio ¹³C/¹²C within a category reflects the environmental conditions such as humidity, temperature, photoperiod, and isotope composition of ambient carbon dioxide [7–14] in which the plant has grown. It is therefore interesting to analyze the isotopic distribution in Cannabis sativa L. of different origins grown under various conditions for possible characterization of seed origin and location of cultivation.

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Paper ID: JFS10910J
DOI: 10.1520/JFS10910J
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