Title

A Physical and Genetic Map of Cannabis sativa Identifies Extensive Rearrangements at the THC/CBD Acid Synthase Loci

Authors

Kaitlin Laverty, University of Toronto
Jake Stout, University of Manitoba
Mitchell Sullivan, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Hardik Shah, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Navdeep Gill, University of British ColumbiaFollow
Larry Holbrook, CanniMed Therapeutics Incorporated
Gintaras Deikus, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Robert Sebra, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Timothy Hughes, University of Toronto
Jonathan Page, University of British Columbia
Harm van Bakel, University of Toronto

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-8-2018

Publication Title

Genome Research

ISSN

1088-9051/19

Volume

29

First Page

146

Last Page

156

Abstract

Cannabis sativa is widely cultivated for medicinal, food, industrial, and recreational use, but much remains unknown regarding its genetics, including the molecular determinants of cannabinoid content. Here, we describe a combined physical and genetic map derived from a cross between the drug-type strain Purple Kush and the hemp variety “Finola.” The map reveals that cannabinoid biosynthesis genes are generally unlinked but that aromatic prenyltransferase (AP), which produces the substrate for THCA and CBDA synthases (THCAS and CBDAS), is tightly linked to a known marker for total cannabinoid content. We further identify the gene encoding CBCA synthase (CBCAS) and characterize its catalytic activity, providing insight into how cannabinoid diversity arises in cannabis. THCAS and CBDAS (which determine the drug vs. hemp chemotype) are contained within large (>250 kb) retrotransposon-rich regions that are highly nonhomologous between drug- and hemp-type alleles and are furthermore embedded within ∼40 Mb of minimally recombining repetitive DNA. The chromosome structures are similar to those in grains such as wheat, with recombination focused in gene-rich, repeat-depleted regions near chromosome ends. The physical and genetic map should facilitate further dissection of genetic and molecular mechanisms in this commercially and medically important plant.

Comments

This article, published in Genome Research, is available under a Creative Commons License (Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International), as described at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

NSUWorks Citation

Laverty, Kaitlin; Jake Stout; Mitchell Sullivan; Hardik Shah; Navdeep Gill; Larry Holbrook; Gintaras Deikus; Robert Sebra; Timothy Hughes; Jonathan Page; and Harm van Bakel. 2018. "A Physical and Genetic Map of Cannabis sativa Identifies Extensive Rearrangements at the THC/CBD Acid Synthase Loci." Genome Research 29, (): 146-156. doi:10.1101/gr.242594.118.

ORCID ID

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3746-1866

DOI

10.1101/gr.242594.118