--- title: "Scientists Gene-Edited Tequila Bacteria to Make Cannabinoids" description: "## Lime Salt THC" date: "2019-03-27" modified: "2019-04-01" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/scientists-gene-edited-tequila-bacteria-cannabinoids" categories: - "Bacteria" - "Health & Medicine" - "Medical" - "Pathogens" tags: - "bacteria" - "cannabinoids" - "cannabis" - "thc" - "yeast" --- # Scientists Gene-Edited Tequila Bacteria to Make Cannabinoids ![A German pharma company patented a process in which genetically modified tequila bacterium produce a range of cannabinoids by just feeding on sugar.]() *\Image: Gábor Adonyi/Brent Barnett via Pixabay/Tag Hartman-Simkins\* ## Lime Salt THC A German pharmaceutical company called Farmako just [registered a patent]() for a process in which genetically modified tequila bacterium produce a range of biosynthetic cannabinoids — the stuff that you usually get by growing marijuana plants — by feeding on sugar. The process that could make producing cannabinoids like tetrahydrocannabinol, better known as THC, a thousand times cheaper, according to the company. ## Yeast vs. Bacteria Last month, [Futurism reported]() on a team of researchers at UC Berkeley who figured out a way to manufacture THC and cannabidiol (CBD) from specially bioengineered brewer's yeast. Farmako claims its new technique represents the first production of cannabinoids through biosynthesis without the use of yeast. Farmako argues that using bacteria instead of yeast could make the process of extracting cannabinoids much easier on an industrial scale, as the cannabinoids and the yeast cells have to be broken up after synthesis. The bacteria, on the other hand, "releases the produced cannabinoids directly into the surrounding medium," said Patrick Schmitt, co-founder of Farmako, in a press release. "This allows continuous production without interruption." ## Sugar High The newly named bacterium Zymomonas cannabinoidis — a gene-edited version of Zymomonas mobilis, which is used to produce tequila — can not only produce cannabinoids by eating sugar, but it can also produce a massive range of "more than 180 known cannabinoids," according to the press release. To stop the bacterium from producing alcohol, the team removed genes from the bacterial genome. To switch between cannabinoids, "only a single gene has to be exchanged," said Schmitt, co-founder of Farmako. *Editor's note: an earlier version of this article mistakenly referred to Farmako's organism as a yeast, rather than a bacteria. It has been updated.* **More on cannabinoid production:** *[Scientists Gene-Hacked Yeast to Make THC Instead of Booze]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()