Authors
Shrawan Kumar Sadawarti, Dr. Lav Kesharwani, A.K. Jain, Dr. Vaibhav Saran, A.K Gupta
Abstract
Cannabis is a tall, erect, annual, dioecious herb, provided with an open sunny environment, light, well-drained composted soil and ample irrigation. Bhang is obtained from cut tops of uncultivated plants and is least potent. The potency depends upon the concentration of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). It is a narcotic drug and is analgesic in nature. Bhang is prepared by crushing the leaf of cannabis plant and its effects are described as sedative, stimulant and hallucinogenic. In present time, the adulterants like Dhatura, Tobacco or chemical substances such as sleeping pills are added to increase or decrease its quality or quantity for benefits. These adulterants are harmful for human body and sometimes it becomes toxic. Therefore, the present study was carried out with the objective of examining the adulterants present in the collected samples of Bhang through several chemical tests and chromatographic methods. The results were both positive and negative that indicated the presence and absence of the adulterants respectively. More than 50% samples were found to be adulterated with Dhatura and tobacco alkaloids. Keywords- Cannabis, Bhang, Nicotine, Sedative, Hallucinogenic, Stimulant,
Introduction
Cannabis is a tall upright annual herb. It is generally dioecious i.e. producing separate male and female plants but fiber hemp varieties have been specifically bred to be monoecious (hermaphrodite). The leaves are palmate, and in the iconic image of a cannabis leaf there are seven lobes, the lowest pair showing as backwards facing spurs. However, this number and shape is not fixed. On seedlings the first pair of leaves is typically monophylous (single lobed), the second pair having three lobes and the next pair five. In many plants, especially of central Asian origin, the number does not extend beyond five while in others the number can extend to around thirteen. The genera Cannabis and Humulus (hops) belong to the same family (Cannabaceae, sometimes known as Cannabinaceae). Generally, cannabis is considered to be monospecific (Cannabis sativa L.) which is divided into several subspecies (C. sativa subsp. sativa, C. sativa subsp. indica, C. sativa subsp. ruderalis, C. sativa subsp. spontanea, C. sativa subsp. afiristanca). However, the chemical and morphological distinctions by which cannabis has been split into these subspecies are often not readily discernible, appear to be environmentally modifiable, and vary in a continuous fashion
References
Buchanan, BE and O’Connell, D (1998), Survey on cannabis resin and cannabis in unsmoked hand rolled cigarettes seized in the Republic of Ireland, Science & Justice, July 1998 38: 221-224.
De Meijer, E.P.M., Kamp, H.J. and Eeuwijk, F.A. (1992), Characterization of Cannabis accessions with regard to cannabinoid content in relation to other plant characteristics, Euphytica, 62, 187-200.
Drugs Working Group of the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes (ENFSI) and UNODC (2009), Guidelines for representative drug sampling.
Fraser and Worth (2002) Monitoring Urinary Excretion of Cannabinoids by Fluorescence Polarization Immunoassay; A Cannabinoid to Study Their Creatinine Ratio. Drug.Monit. (24) pp.746-750.
Grinspoon and Twert, (2003) reported that cannabis is most frequently prepared for human consumption from the dried flowers of the plant commonly referred to in the united states as marijuana. It is usually ingested by smoking but is also consumed orally. As cannabinoid are not water soluble, cannabis preparations are not suitable for injection.
Hall, W. and Pacula, R.L. (2003) Cannabis Use and Dependence. Public health and public policy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Joseph, W.S. and Lowell, P.B. (1979) Department of Agronomy, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky. Plant Physiol. 64, 236-240.
McPartland, J.M. (2008) Adulteration of cannabis with tobacco, calamus, and other cholinergic compounds 3(4):16-20.
McPartland, J.M., Blanchon D, Musty RE.,(2008), Cannabis adulterated by cholinergic agents: a systematic review framed by a case series. Addict Biol 2008; 13(3-4):411-5.
Mobarak, Zaki, N. and Bienick, D. (1974) Some Chromatographic Aspect of Hashish Analysis, Journal of Forensic Sciences, Vol. 4, pp.166-169.
Mabroukah, Al-Darmoon, Mohamed, Erhayem and Mohamed R. (2015) International Conference on Chemical, Civil and Environmental Engineering (CCEE-2015) June 5-6, 2015 Istanbul (Turkey).
Moffat, A.C. (2002) legislation of cannabis for medical use science justice 42:55-57S.
Sharma, B.R. (1974) Forensic Science in Criminal Investigation & Trials. (4thedition), 848-851. 3.
Teska et al. (2002) stated that planer chromatography technique: the classical thin layer chromatography (TLC), the optimum performance laminar chromatography (OPLC) and the automated multiple development (AMD).
Tiwari, S.N. and Sharma, J.D. (1982) Spot Test for Cannabis Material Bull Narcotics, Journal of Forensic Science, Vol.31, pp.109-112.
How to cite this article?
| APA Style | Sadawarti, S. et.al., (2018). Analysis of adulterants in prepared bhang from different Authorized bhang shops. Academic Journal of Forensic Sciences, 1 (2), 22-29. |
| Chicago Style | |
| MLA Style | |
| DOI | |
| URL |