CONTENTS:
- The cannabis crop. Gould J., S2-S3.
Cannabis is one of humanity's oldest cultivated crops. But despite its long history and many uses, hard facts on its evolution and impact on the human body are in short supply.
- Botany: The cultivation of weed. Laursen L., p. S4-S5.
Researchers are getting closer to answering the centuries-old question of how to label cannabis varieties - a necessary step to bring the plant into mainstream agriculture.
- Drug development: The treasure chest. Owens B., S6-S8.
Pharmaceutical research into the chemicals found in cannabis has so far supplied only one licensed medicine. But scientists think there could be hundreds more.
- Perspective: Close the knowledge gap. Page J., Ware M., p. S9.
Nations with cannabis programmes should respond to a lack of research. Canada can be a leader, say Jonathan Page and Mark Ware.
- A potted history. Pain S., S10-S11.
For thousands of years cannabis has been valued as a versatile herbal medicine. In the twentieth century, prescription gave way to proscription. Might this ancient remedy be about to regain its healing reputation?
- Israel: Research without prejudice. Sohn E., S12-S13.
How one Mediterranean country is pushing the frontiers of medical cannabis knowledge.
- Perspective: Be clear about the real risks. Hill M., S14.
The assertion that cannabis use can cause schizophrenia is not borne out by the evidence, says Matthew Hill.
- Medical marijuana: Showdown at the cannabis corral. Eisenstein M., S15-S17.
Researchers are gathering clinical data for medical marijuana against a backdrop of deregulation and opportunism.
- Cannabis: 4 big questions. Gould J., S18.
As restrictions around cannabis research ease, scientists are exploring how the plant could be medically useful. Here are four of the hardest questions they face.