Wood-lover paralysis is a rare complication of mushroom ingestion. The clinical spectrum is poorly characterized and published cases remain limited. We describe three patients who developed acute muscle weakness following ingestion of mushrooms in Victoria, Australia. Written informed consent was obtained from these patients for publication of this case seri...
Treatment-resistant depression (TRD) remains a major clinical challenge and is typically defined as the persistence of depressive symptoms despite at least two adequate antidepressant trials. Individuals with TRD experience substantial morbidity, impaired functioning, and elevated suicide risk, highlighting the need for therapeutic strategies beyond incremen...
Stable, high-level biosynthesis of complex natural products requires precise control of heterologous pathway expression, yet transcriptional architectures optimized on plasmids often fail when transferred to the chromosome. Here, we present ePathIntegrate, a genome-centric pathway engineering strategy that leverages CRISPR-associated transposases (CASTs) to ...
Psilocin is a psychedelic indole alkaloid and one of the major human metabolites of its phosphorylated precursor, psilocybin. Psilocin binds to the serotonin receptor, 5-HT2A, and dose-dependently induces hallucinogenic effects stronger than psilocybin. As a result, psilocin has been a drug of interest in the analytical toxicology community for years. In viv...
The serotonergic hallucinogen psilocybin has shown potential as a treatment for psychiatric conditions like alcohol use disorder (AUD) and depression in clinical studies. Epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation, are hypothesized to contribute to its lasting therapeutic benefits. In this exploratory study, we present the first methylome-wide analysis...
Abstract Rationale The elderly population is rapidly growing. Overwhelming epidemiologic data has demonstrated worse health outcomes with increasing age for a multitude of lung diseases (COVID being one of numerous examples). There is an increasingly urgent need for a more complete understanding of the molecular pathways and biological processes underlying a...
PRE-EMPT will assemble a study group of 150 civilian and Veteran participants from three populations (low risk, intermediate risk, and high risk for self-harm). The investigators will obtain clinical assessments, MRI, and blood levels for circular RNA (circRNA). The teams will then administer three interventions (neurofeedback, transcranial magnetic stimulat...
In April 2024, FSQ Forensic Chemists attended Queensland’s largest mushroom growing operation. Seized items included: 219 50 L plastic tubs of mushrooms in growth medium, bags of dried mushroom material, sterilised grain bags and spores in liquid. In consultation with QPS, six exhibits were selected for illicit drug analysis. Fresh mushrooms were harvested a...
The psychedelic mushroom Psilocybe cubensis is cultivated worldwide for recreational and medicinal use. Described initially from Cuba in 1906, there has been substantial debate about its origin and diversification. The prevailing view is that P. cubensis was inadvertently introduced to the Americas when cattle were introduced to the continent from Africa and...
Research into psychedelic compounds is in resurgence due to the exciting potential for their use in the treatment of psychiatric and mental health disorders. Despite this revival, remarkably little is known about their evolution. One of the most intriguing psychedelic compounds is psilocybin, the compound found in ‘magic’ mushrooms and used in ritual ceremon...
Abstract For many, cognitive and affective health declines through typical aging. Although cognitive and affective symptoms are often studied in isolation, they share substantial overlap, and arise, in part, from common biological processes. Aging is accompanied by diminished neural plasticity, heightened neuroinflammation, and widespread alterations in the ...
The serotonergic hallucinogen psilocybin has shown potential as a treatment for psychiatric conditions like alcohol use disorder (AUD) and depression in clinical studies. Epigenetic mechanisms, including DNA methylation, are hypothesized to contribute to its lasting therapeutic benefits. In this exploratory study, we present the first methylome-wide analysis...
There is growing interest in exploring the therapeutic potential and mechanisms of action of psilocybin on stress-related neuropsychiatric disorders, including depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), addiction, and disordered eating. Despite promising progressions in preclini...
The recent renaissance in research on psychedelics such as psilocybin has highlighted their therapeutic potential including their lasting influences on brain function. Here we report that a single systemic administration of the serotonergic psychedelic psilocybin can durably promote social behaviour in the Cntnap2-knockout mouse model of autism. This effect ...
BACKGROUND: Psilocybin-containing mushrooms are gaining the attention of the scientific community due to the potential benefits offered by their psychoactive phytochemicals in the treatment of addiction and various mental health conditions. Although there are hundreds of different Psilocybe species, only a handful have been successfully cultivated under indo...
Abstract The Psilocybe cubensis SAM-dependent methyltransferase, PsiM, catalyzes the last step in the biosynthesis of psilocybin. Likely evolved from monomethylating RNA methyltransferases, PsiM acquired a key amino acid exchange in the secondary sphere of the active site, M247 N, which is responsible for its capacity to dimethylate. Two variants, PsiM N247M...
“Pretty girls don't buy cocaine,” Greta1 says and laughs as she walks out the front door.My hands and face sting as I stand frozen in the entryway and hear her start the car. I'd asked my twenty-two-year-old daughter where she got the money to feed the addictions she was battling.Over the past three years, she'd chosen a few subpar boyfriends who introduced ...
Psychedelics belong to the oldest psychoactive drugs. They arouse recent interest due to their therapeutic applications in the treatment of major depressive disorder, substance use disorder, end-of-life anxiety,= and anxiety symptoms, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. In this review, the current state of preclinical research on the mechanism of action, neur...
Abstract Psilocybin is the psychoactive substance contained in the psilocybe(hallucinogenic) mushroom, which has received considerable attention among the scientific community in recent years. Human studies have demonstrated that even a single-dose of psilocybin can improve debilitating physical and psychological symptoms with durable long-term effects. >136...
Psychedelic fungi have received considerable attention recently due to their promising treatment potential of several psychiatric disorders and medical conditions, both in clinical settings but also as a nutraceutical. Besides research, a growing number of companies are developing capacity to conduct research and clinical trials where these fungi and their p...
