The synthetic cannabinoids fall into seven major structural groups:

Cannabinoids like THCA (which converts to THC with heat and over time) are produced in tiny glands on the surface of the plant called trichomes. Trichomes appear on many plant species and serve to protect in a variety of ways, including: Defending against insect herbivores.

trichomes
Cannabinoids are synthesized through a common pathway in trichomes. The cannabinoids are biosynthesized in the glandular trichomes, or “marijuana bud” of female flowers; trichome-poor male flowers are typically very low in cannabinoids (Livingston et al. 2020).

THC is the only plant cannabinoid that you know for sure has clear intoxicating effects on its own. There is some evidence to suggest that THCV may also have intoxicating effects, although whether it does may depend on dose.

THC is the main psychoactive compound in cannabis that produces the high sensation. It can be consumed by smoking cannabis. It’s also available in oils, edibles, tinctures, capsules, and more. Both compounds interact with your body’s endocannabinoid system, but they have very different effects.

• Naphthoylindoles (e.g. JWH-018, JWH-073 and JWH-398).
• Naphthylmethylindoles.
• Naphthoylpyrroles.
• Naphthylmethylindenes.
• Phenylacetylindoles (i.e. benzoylindoles, e.g. JWH-250).
• Cyclohexylphenols (e.g. CP 47,497 and homologues of CP 47,497).

Common Types Of Cannabinoids Found In Cannabis

• Tetrahydrocannabinolic Acid (THCA)
• Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)
• Cannabidolic Acid (CBDA)
• Cannabidiol (CBD)
• Cannabinol (CBN)
• Cannabigerol (CBG)
• Cannabichromene (CBC)
• Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV)

These include aminoalkylindoles, such as naphthoylindoles (e.g. JWH-018), phenylacetylindoles (e.g. JWH-250), and benzoylindoles (e.g. AM-2233) [2]. JWH-018, arguably the most widely known synthetic cannabinoid, belongs to the group of aminoalkylindoles and is considered to be three times as potent as THC.

Cannabis is an herbal drug that is made from the Cannabis plant. It contains chemicals called cannabinoids. Cannabinoids are found in the highest levels in the leaves and flowers of cannabis. These are the parts of the herb that are used to make medicine.

Synthetic cannabinoids are a class of compounds originally synthesised to further investigate cannabinoid receptors, and the potential medicinal benefits of cannabis. None of them are found naturally in cannabis – they are all the product of laboratory synthesis. Work on them began in the 1970s, and initially they were structurally similar to THC.

Terpinoid chiral pool approaches The biosynthesis of THC relies on stereoselective enzymatic conversions using linear, achiral polyketides and alkenyl phosphates.

Interestingly, more than 2000 compounds are produced by pyrolysis during smoking of cannabis (10, 11) and they are represented by different classes of chemicals including nitrogenous compounds, amino acids, hydrocarbons, sugar, terpenes and simple fatty acids.

When preparing THC itself, or the variant THC-II, the synthesis is somewhat shorter, due to the fact that the methyl-group side chain need not be added. Although the three isomers described above have similar potency, other isomeric variations of the THC molecule reduce or eliminate psychedelic effect.