page_title: Cannabidiol
section_title: Biosynthesis
hierarchical_section_title: Cannabidiol / Chemistry / Biosynthesis
caption_attribution_description: English: An image detailing the differences in reaction pathway for THC/CBD Taura, F., Sirikantaramas, S., Shoyama, Y., Yoshikai, K., Shoyama, Y., Morimoto, S. (2007). "Cannabidiolic-acid synthase, the chemotype-determining enzyme in the fiber-type Cannabis sativa". FEBS Letters 581 (16): 2929–2934. doi:10.1016/j.febslet.2007.05.043
context_page_description: Cannabidiol is a phytocannabinoid discovered in 1940. It is one of 113 identified cannabinoids in cannabis plants and accounts for up to 40% of the plant's extract. As of 2019, clinical research on CBD included studies of anxiety, cognition, movement disorders, and pain, but there is still insufficient high-quality evidence that it is effective for these conditions.
  Cannabidiol can be taken into the body in multiple ways, including by inhalation of cannabis smoke or vapor, as an aerosol spray into the cheek, and by mouth. It may be supplied as CBD oil containing only CBD as the active ingredient, CBD-dominant hemp extract oil, capsules, dried cannabis, or prescription liquid solution. CBD does not have the same psychoactivity as THC, and may change the effects of THC on the body if both are present. As of 2018, the mechanism of action for its biological effects has not been determined.
  In the United States, the cannabidiol drug Epidiolex was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2018 for the treatment of two epilepsy disorders.
context_section_description: Cannabis produces CBD-carboxylic acid through the same metabolic pathway as THC, until the next to last step, where CBDA synthase performs catalysis instead of THCA synthase.
caption: Cannabidiol and THC biosynthesis[55]
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