| Description: |
The Cannabinoids are a group of more than 60 C-21 compounds found in the plant, Cannabis sativa(6). The active ingredient in Cannabinoids is Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). THC produces effects of euphoria, sedation and an altered time sense (5, 7). As a ‘street’ drug it is sold primarily as hashish (the plant resin) or marijuana (flowering tops of the female plant). The primary route of illicit consumption of cannabis is by smoking in cigarettes or pipes. It can also be ingested in cakes and confectionery and hashish oil (the most potent form) can be taken intravenously. An overdose of THC can cause hallucinations, coma and death (5, 7).
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5. Wild D. (ed), The Immunoassay Handbook, second edition, Nature Publishing Group, London, Basingstoke, New York, 2001, 808-810. 6. Substance-Abuse Testing Committee. Critical issues in urinalysis of abused substances: report on the substance-abuse testing committee. Clin Chem, 1988, 34: 605-632. 7. Schuckit M.A. Drug and Alcohol Abuse, A clinical guide to Diagnosis and Treatment, fifth edition, Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, 2000, 11-12. 8. Huestis M A, Mitchell J M and Cone E J, Detection times of marijuana metabolites in urine by immunoassay and GC-MS, J.Anal.Toxicol. 1995, 19: 443-449. 9. Razdan RK. Chemistry and structure activity relationships of cannabinoids. An overview from Agurell S. Dervey W.L. and Willette R.E. (ed), The Cannabinoids: Chemical, pharmacological and therapeutic aspects, 1984, 63-78.
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