Predicting chemovar cluster and variety verification in vegetative cannabis accessions using targeted single nucleotide polymorphisms

The cannabis industry has gained momentum and global acceptance recently, culminating in the legalization of adult use at the federal level in Canada, a first among G20 countries. Inherent to legalization, a highly regulated regime has emerged, mostly centered on end user safety, restriction of access to youth, and diversion of market shares away from the black market and organized crime. The lack of authentication of cannabis varieties remains as an issue often unaddressed by the regulators, although this has the potential to seriously hamper research and the medical application of cannabis derived products. Here, we extend upon previous work that aims to classify cannabis accessions based on their dominant terpene profiles, focusing on four main informative terpenes, beta-myrcene, terpinolene, limonene and beta-caryophyllene. We identify three major terpene groups and present a simple genetic-based tool to bridge the variety identification gap and to enable the prediction of terpenoid expression in vegetative cannabis. This genetic tool offers promise to sorting out the strain name game that has been ongoing, thus providing greater transparency in the industry and contributing to an enhanced understanding of cannabis medicine for the end user.