# The Origin and Biomedical Relevance of Cannabigerol
## 6 Pharmacokinetics of Cannabigerol  
To determine the potential use of cannabigerol in pharmacotherapy, in addition to the knowledge about its effect on the metabolic processes occurring in the human body under physiological and pathophysiological conditions, it is necessary to analyze the pharmacokinetics of the compound in question after its introduction into the body. In vivo studies have shown that cannabigerol suspended in mixtures of glycerol and ethylene oxide (cremophor EL) and ethanol and saline in a ratio of 1:1:18 administered orally or intraperitoneally to rats and mice in varying amounts concentrates in the blood plasma [72]. It has been found that the plasma concentration of CBG in rats was slightly higher after intraperitoneal administration compared to the concentration reached after oral administration (Figure 5). In contrast, the maximum plasma concentration of CBG in mice was over 60 times higher after oral administration compared to intraperitoneal administration, yet this level was reached as late as after 2 h (in the case of intraperitoneal administration, the maximum concentration was reached after 30 min). In addition, brain levels of CBG in both mice and rats were shown to be higher in the case of intraperitoneal administration, which favors very significant increases in CBG levels. The studies also showed that intraperitoneal administration was accompanied by a longer elimination half-life of cannabigerol, with no common relationship between the mode of administration of CBG and the time required to reach its maximum concentration in both animal models tested [72]. Determination of CBG concentrations in the human body, mainly in the blood, is also used for diagnostic purposes, i.e., as a biomarker of recent use of cannabis containing the narcotic \(\Delta^{9}\)-THC. This is all the more important due to the fact that, according to data published in the 2021 World Drug Report, hemp (including _Cannabis sativa_ L.) is the most widely used drug worldwide. According to the report, it is estimated that almost 4% of the global human population has used cannabis at least once in 2019 alone, which equates to around 200 million people [73]. Given past trends, it can be assumed that this number will continue to rise in the coming years. Thus, knowledge of the pharmacokinetics of the phytocannabinoids present in _Cannabis sativa_ L, obtained using different types of biological  
Figure 5: Pharmacokinetics of cannabigerol (120 mg/kg) in rats and mice depending on the mode of administration [72]. material, may be necessary to assess the intake of _Cannabis sativa_ L-based preparations, as well as the time of their use. Considering that in the case of frequent cannabis smokers, \(\Delta^{9}\)-THC can be detected in the blood as late as 30 days after the last use, the phytocannabinoid cannot be used to determine the exact time when _Cannabis sativa_ L. was smoked. Due to the changes in CBG levels in the living body, including in the blood, over a relatively short period of time after exposure to the compound, the variation in cannabinoid concentrations after vaporization or smoking _Cannabis sativa_ L. was studied (Figure 6). In smokers of cannabis in the form of \"active\" cigarettes, maximum CBG concentrations were found to reach 6.9 \(\upmu\)g/L after about 7 min and 3.0 \(\upmu\)g/L after about 6 min in frequent and occasional smokers, respectively. It was found that detection of cannabinoid in the blood of frequent smokers is possible up to 16 min after smoking an active cigarette, while in occasional smokers this time is reduced to 9 min. In the case of vaporization, lower levels of mean maximum CBG concentrations in blood were observed in both study groups, which can be explained by the lower efficiency of release of cannabinoid from _Cannabis sativa_ L. under conditions of vaporization, compared to smoking. In contrast, no cannabinoid was detected in the blood of subjects who were administered _Cannabis sativa_ L. orally [74].