Live data from Hacker News

Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

nytimes.com

1–10 of 63 posts

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#2
I don't see how this is superior to having the plant itself create THC which is much simpler and cheaper. Other than being a cool trick, how is this going to change the world, as the article claims? It really doesn't specify how the THC produced from yeast is any better or different than that produced from the plant. Can yeast production be scaled up in ways that plat production can't? Or is it just that it might be more illogically acceptable to certain people because it comes from yeast?

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#3
post #2

I don't see how this is superior to having the plant itself create THC which is much simpler and cheaper. Other than being a cool trick, how is this going to change the world, as the article claims? It really doesn't specify how the THC produced from yeast is any better or different than that produced from the plant. Can yeast production be scaled up in ways that plat production can't? Or is it just that it might be…

Perhaps the process is both scalable and patentable.

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#4
post #2

I don't see how this is superior to having the plant itself create THC which is much simpler and cheaper. Other than being a cool trick, how is this going to change the world, as the article claims? It really doesn't specify how the THC produced from yeast is any better or different than that produced from the plant. Can yeast production be scaled up in ways that plat production can't? Or is it just that it might be…

If you have the opportunity, go tour an Anheuser-Busch production facility. They are the perfect demonstration of operating on a massive scale with yeast, what ever you feel about their end product. Will this change the world? No. Will is make it possible to drastically reduce the cost of producing these compounds on an industrial scale? With what's described in the article? No, because it still requires specially prepared source chemicals.

"Still, it’s an enormous challenge to modify yeast to synthesize THC or cannabidiol from raw materials like sugar; the current strains in Dr. Kayser’s laboratory are capable of only the final stage of the synthesis. Ultimately, biochemists may need to insert more than a dozen genes into the yeast."

If they solve the above, then it will become interesting, and I'm sure they are rushing headlong to solve it.

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#5
post #3
post #2

I don't see how this is superior to having the plant itself create THC which is much simpler and cheaper. Other than being a cool trick, how is this going to change the world, as the article claims? It really doesn't specify how the THC produced from yeast is any better or different than that produced from the plant. Can yeast production be scaled up in ways that plat production can't? Or is it just that it might be…

Perhaps the process is both scalable and patentable.

Scalable? Yes. Patentable? No. Although, the yeast could be a trade secret.

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#6
post #2

I don't see how this is superior to having the plant itself create THC which is much simpler and cheaper. Other than being a cool trick, how is this going to change the world, as the article claims? It really doesn't specify how the THC produced from yeast is any better or different than that produced from the plant. Can yeast production be scaled up in ways that plat production can't? Or is it just that it might be…

It makes sense when the plant is still illegal, while the yeast product is available as a drug for patients. This would be a real money maker, but I think the plant is still the better deal for patients and should be legal.

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#7
post #2

I don't see how this is superior to having the plant itself create THC which is much simpler and cheaper. Other than being a cool trick, how is this going to change the world, as the article claims? It really doesn't specify how the THC produced from yeast is any better or different than that produced from the plant. Can yeast production be scaled up in ways that plat production can't? Or is it just that it might be…

Perhaps it can be generalized to compounds other than THC. Possibly even drugs that do not exist in nature.

Or maybe not, but we won't know until we start experimenting and exploring. If we knew exactly what would work in advance, it wouldn't be research.

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#8
post #2

I don't see how this is superior to having the plant itself create THC which is much simpler and cheaper. Other than being a cool trick, how is this going to change the world, as the article claims? It really doesn't specify how the THC produced from yeast is any better or different than that produced from the plant. Can yeast production be scaled up in ways that plat production can't? Or is it just that it might be…

William Randolph Hearst spent a lot of time and money getting both marijuana and hemp criminalized in the early part of the last century. His motive was to change the way we produce paper (he owned lots of forests and wanted to move from hemp pulp to paper pulp). So, our laws criminalize a fibrous plant, not a psycho-active substance produced by one strain of that plat. Having yeast produce THC does an end run around our silly laws.

Re: Newly Risen from Yeast: THC

#10
> European regulators, he said, are eager for a way to create a steady supply of THC and other cannabinoids without actually cultivating marijuana. “They are in fear that these plants will be grown and will support some illegal farming,”

So the regulators are eager to flood the market with GMO THC, so they can stop people from growing their own organic THC? Sounds like they just want to commercialize & control it.

Post reply on HN