Cannabis Varieties Can Be Distinguished by Achene Shape Using Geometric Morphometrics

Area of Science:

• Botany
• Plant genetics
• Chemotaxonomy

Background:

• Cannabis varieties are classified by chemical profiles (cannabinoids, terpenoids), known as chemovars.
• Accurate chemovar identification is crucial for medical applications but is currently costly and time-consuming.
• Geometric morphometrics offers a potential alternative for rapid chemovar assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if achene shape variation correlates with distinct cannabinoid profiles in Cannabis.
• To explore the potential of achene morphology as a preliminary indicator for chemovar identification.

Main Methods:

• Utilized two-dimensional geometric morphometrics (GM) to analyze achene shape.
• Employed multivariate statistical analysis on achenes from five Cannabis varieties.
• Included varieties representing Type I (THC-only), Type II (THC and CBD), and Type III (CBD-only) chemotypes.

Main Results:

• Achene morphology effectively distinguished between different Cannabis chemotypes.
• No significant shape differences were found between varieties within the same chemotype.
• High-THC (Type I) varieties had larger, rounded achenes, while CBD-only (Type III) varieties exhibited smaller, slender achenes.

Conclusions:

• Achene shape variation serves as a potential biomarker for predicting cannabinoid content in Cannabis flowers.
• Geometric morphometrics shows promise for high-throughput screening of Cannabis cultivars.
• Further research is needed to validate these findings across diverse varieties and growing conditions.