Kinetic studies of the interaction of cannabinoids with singlet oxygen

Abstract The kinetics of the interaction of several cannabinoids with singlet oxygen have been examined in acetonitrile solution using laser flash photolysis techniques and using xanthone as a singlet oxygen sensitizer. Typical rate constants for these Type 2 reactions are in the 1–7 × 107 M−1 s−1 range and are in accordance with typical reactivities for phenolic compounds. Protection of the phenolic function reduces the reactivity by approximately a factor of five, thus confirming that singlet oxygen quenching is dominated