Raphaël Mechoulam

Raphaël Mechoulam was born into a Jewish family in Sofia, Bulgaria, on November 5, 1930. His father, a doctor, was deported during the Second World War, but survived to emigrate to Israel in 1949. Raphaël followed him and studied at the Weizmann Institute, where he obtained his doctorate in chemistry in 1958. He then joined the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he spent most of his career.

The «discovery» of THC in 1964

In 1964, Raphaël Mechoulam made what is probably the most important discovery in the history of cannabis research: he isolated and synthesized tetrahydrocannabinol, better known as THC, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis. This discovery, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, paves the way for all modern cannabinoid research.

A year earlier, in 1963, he also isolated the cannabidiol (CBD) and determined its chemical structure, laying the foundations for what would become a global industry decades later.

The discovery of the endocannabinoid system

Perhaps his most fundamental contribution was the discovery of the endocannabinoid system in the 1990s. Seeking to understand how THC affects the brain, Mechoulam and his team identified the cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2, and then the endogenous ligands that naturally bind to them, the endocannabinoids, including anandamide, which he named after the Sanskrit word ananda meaning «bliss».

This discovery reveals that the human body produces its own cannabinoids and has a complete regulatory system involved in pain, mood, memory, appetite and immunity, with far-reaching implications for modern medicine.

The father of cannabis research

For over six decades, Raphaël Mechoulam has published over 400 scientific articles and trained generations of researchers. He helped legitimize cannabis research at a time when the subject was scientifically and politically taboo, and campaigned all his life for cannabinoids to be recognized as therapeutic molecules in their own right.

Raphaël Mechoulam died on March 9, 2023 in Jerusalem, at the age of 92, leaving behind him an immense scientific legacy that continues to inspire us.
shaping global medical cannabis research and industry.