Eric Haze

Many growers simply discard cannabis leaves as waste, but a new study suggests they're throwing away something potentially priceless. Chemists at Stellenbosch University in South Africa used advanced chromatography and high-resolution mass spectrometry to uncover a rare class of compounds in cannabis leaves: flavoalkaloids. These molecules are extremely uncommon in nature and had never before been identified in cannabis. Known for powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, flavoalkaloids show promise for treating cancer, chronic inflammation, and other conditions. The researchers examined three cultivated cannabis strains and detected a total of 79 phenolic compounds, 25 of which were entirely new to cannabis science. Most strikingly, 16 of these were the rare flavoalkaloids, and they appeared predominantly in the leaves of just one strain. The real surprise? These valuable compounds weren’t in the prized buds, but in the leaves that are routinely tossed after harvest. Lead researcher Dr. Magriet Muller noted that cutting-edge analytical techniques made it possible to isolate these scarce molecules from the much more abundant flavonoids and other common compounds. Even seasoned cannabis chemists were taken aback by the findings. While most research continues to focus on well-known cannabinoids like THC and CBD, this discovery reveals that cannabis chemistry is far richer and more complex than previously thought. [“Comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatographic analysis of Cannabis phenolics…” Journal of Chromatography A, 2025]