Raphael Mechoulam believes that marijuana is the world’s most misunderstood plant. For years, Dr. Mechoulam has been obsessed with cannabis and marijuana, studying the pharmacology of cannabinoids.
Mechoulam is the leading chemist in the world of marijuana, and has become chief investigator of the plant. According to the Scientist, THC interacts with the largest receptor in the human body. He has been dubbed as the “Father of Marijuana”, and this is his story.
He started his career in his early days, from the moment he escaped to Jerusalem during the Holocaust days as a young child. Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, Raphael was the son of a physician and the head of a local hospital.
What is interesting is that Raphael studied chemical engineering, a field he disliked at the time, and has since become one of the leading chemists in the world. He got a masters in biochemistry in 1952 in Jerusalem, and from there, he became obsessed with the most misunderstood plant in the world.
He started investigating marijuana in the early 1960s, looking for an interesting topic to impress his professors at the Weizmann Institute in Israel. Since then, Mechoulam has been nominated for more than 25 awards in chemistry.
