Another active compound researchers are calling a cannabinoid has been discovered in another plant species that grows wild like a weed all over Brazil, further showing that cannabis compound properties are not entirely unique to one species.

After finding cannabinoid-like compounds in several other plants beyond cannabis, the most recent being a psychoactive THC-like compound in the liverwort genus Radula, or the CBG-like compound and five other cannabinoids found in Helichrysum umbraculigerum, or the woolly umbrella plant. Other common plants may have similar properties.

A new CBD-like compound has been found, but unlike many of the aforementioned plants, this time it’s an actual cousin of cannabis and hops, falling in the Cannabaceae family. And since THC restrictions make extracting CBD from hemp difficult, with the risk of hot hemp, this plant could eliminate that problem altogether.

Researchers associated with the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) announced that Trema micrantha—a species of plant native to Brazil and other South American countries—“can expand the use of cannabidiol (CBD) for medicinal purposes without legal barriers.” 

Chemical analysis didn’t show any THC-like compounds in Trema micrantha. But as for CBD production, the plant could show promise as a game-changer, since hot hemp is a major headache for the hemp industry with traces of THC.

“It’s a legal alternative to using cannabis,” molecular biologist Rodrigo Moura Neto of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro told AFP. “This is a plant that grows all over Brazil. It would be a simpler and cheaper source of cannabidiol.”

What is Trema micrantha?

Experiencia seeds reports that Trema micrantha is also called the Florida trema—a species of flowering plant in the hemp and hops family, Cannabaceae. It’s a fast-growing, deciduous tree that can reach up to 10 meters in height. It grows across Brazil as a native plant, and can also be found in other tropical and subtropical regions throughout the globe. 

Trema is known for its hardiness and ability to thrive in nearly any soil condition, making it a common weed found in urban landscapes. Most people consider it to be a weed.

In its native habitats, Trema micrantha plays an important ecological role, providing fruits as a food source for a variety of bird species. It also contributes to seed dispersal and biodiversity. The plant’s rapid growth and dense foliage provides shelter for wildlife, while its roots are believed to help to prevent soil erosion. In urban environments, Trema micrantha is often used in landscaping for its look and its ability to improve air quality by absorbing pollutants.

Science Alert reports that the results have not yet been published. Neto now plans to ramp up the study to better identify the best methods to extract “CBD” from the plant and analyze its effectiveness in patients with conditions currently treated with medical cannabis.

A New Source of CBD?

The plant could prove to be a new source of CBD in a massive global market. 

Neto’s team recently won a 500,000 real ($104,000 USD) grant from the Brazilian government to fund the research, which he estimates will take a minimum of five years to complete.

Considering the explosion of the CBD market, it’s a new avenue worth exploring.

The global CBD market was valued at $4.9 billion USD in 2021 and is projected to reach a value of $47.22 billion USD by 2028 at a CAGR of 21.20% over the forecast period.

The CBD market is expected to grow tremendously as consumer awareness of health and fitness increases.

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Helichrysum umbraculigerum, or the woolly umbrella plant, is a velvety yellow perennial herb native to South Africa, and Israeli researchers recently discovered that the plant, which is definitively not a part of the cannabis family, happens to produce a number of cannabinoids that, until now, were believed to belong exclusively to the cannabis and hemp plants. 

The recent discovery could open new avenues for cannabinoid medicines and treatments. The study, titled “Turning a new leaf on cannabinoids,” was conducted by researchers from the Weizmann Institute of Science and published in the journal Nature Plants earlier this month.

Cannabis and the Woolly Umbrella Plant

Researchers have studied cannabinoids and their potential uses for decades. The most well-known cannabinoid tends to be THC, though there are plenty of others that have gained prominence over the years, have little-to-no psychoactive effects and could assist in treating a variety of symptoms and conditions.

While cannabis is known to produce more than 100 different cannabinoids, the research team identified more than 40 cannabinoids found in the woolly umbrella. They also shared the biochemical steps the plant takes as it produces these compounds and how these steps can be reproduced in a laboratory, to synthesize existing cannabinoids or potentially engineer new ones that don’t exist in nature.

“We have found a major new source of cannabinoids and developed tools for their sustained production, which can help explore their enormous therapeutic potential,” said study leader Dr. Shirley Berman of the Weizmann Institute of Science.

The woolly umbrella plant is a relative of daisies, lettuce and sunflowers. It can reach up to one meter in height and is often used to make garden borders. It’s also been known to be burned in folk rituals to release intoxicating fumes, which hints that there might be more under the surface. 

More than four decades ago, German scientists also found evidence that the woolly umbrella contains cannabinoids, though modern studies have failed to reproduce those findings until now. In fact, the research team launched the study of the woolly umbrella specifically to revisit its relationship to cannabinoids and larger potential as a medical aid.

A New Frontier for Cannabinoids?

The research team used state-of-the-art technology to confirm those early reports. Specifically, they sequenced the entire woolly umbrella genome and used advanced analytical chemistry to identify the cannabinoids it contains. Researchers were also able to reveal the precise structure of more than a dozen of the observed cannabinoids, along with other related metabolites. 

They found that the woolly umbrella primarily manufactures cannabis in its leaves, which could be a benefit compared to cannabis, which makes cannabinoids in the shorter-lived, sometimes challenging-to-harvest flower clusters. Regardless, researchers found many commonalities between the two plants; particularly, the enzymes used in each step of cannabinoid production belong to the same families.

Researchers found that six cannabinoids found in the woolly umbrella are identical to those in cannabis. THC and CBD were not among them, though CBG, or cannabigerol, was. CBG has increasingly grown in popularity, as research has continued to reveal its potential therapeutic benefits. Similar to CBD, the cannabinoid also lacks the mood-altering effects that create a “high.”

With cannabis plants specifically, CBG is considered the main precursor to many popular cannabinoids. Namely, THCA, CBDA and CBCA all start as CBG’s acidic form, CBGA, which often leaves little CBG for harvest among mature plants. Growers have explored workarounds to maximize CBG production, but the woolly umbrella could pave the way to another solution.

A Promising Finding for Future Exploration

Additionally, researchers noted that there is an ecological point of view to further examine. Scientists still don’t fully understand why plants produce cannabinoids, though some evidence suggests it may help to deter predators or offer protection from ultraviolet rays.

“The fact that in the course of evolution two genetically unrelated plants independently developed the ability to make cannabinoids suggests that these compounds perform important ecological functions,” said Professor Asaph Aharoni, whose lab was used for the study. “More research is needed to determine what these functions are.”

Moving forward, the study findings may allow scientists to engineer cannabinoids that don’t exist in nature, allowing for better binding to human cannabinoid receptors or even specific therapeutic effects. The cannabinoids specific to the woolly umbrella plant could also hold untapped potential.

“The next exciting step would be to determine the properties of the more than 30 new cannabinoids we’ve discovered, and then to see what therapeutic uses they might have,” Berman said.

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