Scientist hopes to revolutionize cannabis research with groundbreaking academic role

Yang Qu hopes to pave the way to unleash the full potential of cannabis – both commercial and medical – just as he did with one of Canada's leading cancer drug researchers.

Aged 35, he will soon be the first university researcher in the country to focus solely on the cannabis plant.

"The legalization has just released research on this plant," said Qu, which will begin in January at the University of New Brunswick.

There is still a lot we do not know about cannabis, he said.

"The industry is growing, as we all know," Qu said. "I'm sure the exciting biological activities that we will draw from this plant will contribute to the growth of the industry."

According to Qu, one of his main goals is to examine the medical capacity of cannabinoids and to design new methods of manufacture.

Although there are more than 90 different types of cannabinoids – chemical compounds in cannabis – it only knows two of them: tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive compound of the plant, and cannabidiol, a compound usually used to relieve pain.

Studying the remaining types of cannabinoids could help scientists tap into previously unexplored medicinal potential, Qu said.

"Once we have more information on the individual activity of cannabinoids, we can try to produce these cannabinoids in cannabis plants," he said.

It also aims to improve the genetics of cannabis plants in order to reduce production costs and facilitate their growth, both in cold climates and in greenhouses.

He also wants to explore the possibilities of synthetic production of cannabinoids instead of extracting them from a plant.

With a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Calgary, Qu led a research team at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, where he studied the biosynthesis of anticancer drugs: those derived from the periwinkle of Madagascar, a type of flowering plant.

There, he identified the genes responsible for making these drugs and transferred them to a microorganism, such as yeast, that can catalyze the same reaction as the plant.

Qu added that his work on Madagascar periwinkle can be directly applied to his research on cannabis.

"From a scientific point of view, they are not really connected at all. But, you know, a plant is a plant, "he said.

"The search tools are basically transferable from one factory to another."

He thinks that this method can be used to synthetically produce cannabinoids, which would result in larger amounts and a purer compound.

But before Qu got to work in January, he announced that he would consult with government agencies and the private sector to identify areas where research was lacking to better understand his goals.

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