Cannabis industry Researcher Pathologist Dr. Zamir Punja will address students from NC’s Commercial Cannabis Production program on April 20, and the talk will be available to a broader audience as a GrowON webinar.
Dr. Punja – who is a Professor of Plant Biotechnology, Biological Sciences at Simon Fraser University – will focus on Hop Latent viroid (HpLVd) which has a severe economic impact. The widespread infectious pathogen causes stunt disease on cannabis (Cannabis sativa L.), a reduction in growth of affected plants, and reduced cannabinoid production.
Through the online webinar, Dr. Punja will discuss symptomology, spread, impact on THC and terpene production, and response of cannabis genotypes. The presence of the viroid in different tissues, survival over time, and options for management will also be reviewed.
“Viroid disease is the biggest threat pathogen to cannabis industry – plants showed symptom of unknown disease in 2015 in California, was IDed as HLVd in 2019, by 2021 it was in 90% of crops in west coast USA, made its way to Canada in 2019, since spread to more than 1/3 of industry,” said NC Professor Sebastian Jacob, MSc, who organized the speaker to address two cohorts of his Commercial Cannabis classes via video chat.
“The talk will be about a viroid that is causing havoc in one-third of the industry currently and expanding,” said. “It directly relates to our Commercial Cannabis Production program Pathology courses and Analysis courses.
While he noted that the topic would be too advanced for general public interest, Jacob reached out to Grow ON (OMAFRA, Agriculture Canada) with the prospect of broadening the audience through the webinar series. He said that the webinar would be of interest to those currently in or on a career path to the cannabis industry who should be aware of the latest research in the field.
The webinar, presented by NC and the Ministry of Agriculture, will be held on April 20, between noon and 1:30 p.m. (EST).
Webinar registration
To register visit:
us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_AZHsQ-7wTKWYdfP5YJJJyw#/ or visit ONfloriculture.com.
Bio: Dr. Zamir K. Punja
Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University,
Dr. Punja completed MSc and PhD degrees in plant pathology from the University of California, Davis. He joined Campbell Soup Company and was Manager of plant biotechnology until 1989, when he left to join Simon Fraser University.
His research investigates the causes and management of plant diseases on vegetable and horticultural crops, and includes the applications of plant biotechnology for disease management. His group is currently developing methods for identifying and managing new and emerging diseases of cannabis.
