Research:2021-05-01/Journal article/cannuse-a-database-of-traditional-cannabis-uses-an-opportunity-for-new-research

ResearchJournal article1 May 2021

CANNUSE, a database of traditional Cannabis uses—an opportunity for new research

Manica Balant, Airy Gras, Francisco Gálvez, Teresa Garnatje, Joan Vallès, Daniel Vitales

Database

Abstract

Cannabis is one of the most versatile genera in terms of plant uses and has been exploited by humans for millennia due to its medicinal properties, strong fibres, nutritious seeds and psychoactive resin. Nowadays, Cannabis is the centre of many scientific studies, which mainly focus on its chemical composition and medicinal properties. Unfortunately, while new applications of this plant are continuously being developed, some of its traditional uses are becoming rare and even disappearing altogether. Information on traditional uses of Cannabis is vast, but it is scattered across many publication sources in different formats, so synthesis and standardization of these data are increasingly important. The CANNUSE database provides an organized information source for scientists and general public interested in different aspects of Cannabis use. It contains over 2300 entries from 649 publications related to medicinal, alimentary, fibre and other uses from different geographical areas and cultures around the world. We believe this database will serve as a starting point for new research and development strategies based on the traditional knowledge. Database URL: http://cannusedb.csic.es

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DOI10.1093/database/baab024

DatabaseCANNUSE

Record created 10 November 2026maintained by landrace.wiki editorspage history

2021-05-01 2026-11-10 CANNUSE, a database of traditional Cannabis uses—an opportunity for new research Journal article Culture Manica Balant, Airy Gras, Francisco Gálvez, Teresa Garnatje, Joan Vallès, Daniel Vitales Database 2021 10.1093/database/baab024 https://academic.oup.com/database/article/doi/10.1093/database/baab024/6261425 Data paper presenting CANNUSE, an open database of traditional uses of Cannabis built at the Institut Botànic de Barcelona and the Universitat de Barcelona. The authors searched Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed and Google Scholar for English-language publications up to the end of October 2020, kept only uses recorded through ethnobotanical interviews and added further references cited in those papers. The result is 2,330 entries from 649 publications in 41 countries, each entry being one use quoted in one publication. Entries are sorted into medicinal, alimentary, fibre, psychoactive and other uses, with separate categories for toxicity reports and vernacular names; medicinal uses are standardised against the Oxford Concise Medical Dictionary and grouped into 16 body-system categories, with the authors' original wording kept beside them. Most entries come from India and Pakistan. The data are released under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, which the authors chose to protect knowledge holders from commercial misappropriation. The statistical analysis of the same data appeared later in 2021 in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology. Cannabis is one of the most versatile genera in terms of plant uses and has been exploited by humans for millennia due to its medicinal properties, strong fibres, nutritious seeds and psychoactive resin. Nowadays, Cannabis is the centre of many scientific studies, which mainly focus on its chemical composition and medicinal properties. Unfortunately, while new applications of this plant are continuously being developed, some of its traditional uses are becoming rare and even disappearing altogether. Information on traditional uses of Cannabis is vast, but it is scattered across many publication sources in different formats, so synthesis and standardization of these data are increasingly important. The CANNUSE database provides an organized information source for scientists and general public interested in different aspects of Cannabis use. It contains over 2300 entries from 649 publications related to medicinal, alimentary, fibre and other uses from different geographical areas and cultures around the world. We believe this database will serve as a starting point for new research and development strategies based on the traditional knowledge. Database URL: http://cannusedb.csic.es