ACS Omega
February 7, 2022
Robert B. Kargbo, Alexander M. Sherwood, Poncho Meisenheimer et al.
5 citations
Psilocybin, a serotonergic agonist, was granted a "breakthrough therapy" status by the Food and Drug Administration for clinical trials involving major depressive disorder and treatment-resistant depression. The direct phosphorylation of psilocin to psilocybin that uses a fast crystallization associated with a kinetically controlled process resulted in a smaller particle size distribution....
Acta Crystallographica Section C Structural Chemistry
December 20, 2021
Alexander M. Sherwood, Robert B. Kargbo, Kristi W. Kaylo et al.
10 citations
Psilocybin {systematic name: 3-[2-(dimethylamino)ethyl]-1 H -indol-4-yl dihydrogen phosphate} is a zwitterionic tryptamine natural product found in numerous species of fungi known for their psychoactive properties. Following its structural elucidation and chemical synthesis in 1959, purified synthetic psilocybin has been evaluated in clinical trials and has shown promise in the treatment of...
ACS Omega
July 1, 2020
Jessica Sable, Tura Patterson, Gary Tarpley et al.
41 citations
A second-generation kilogram-scale synthesis of the psychedelic tryptamine psilocybin has been developed. The synthesis was designed to address several challenges first encountered with the scale-up of previously described literature procedures, which were not optimized for providing consistent yield and purity of products, atom economy, or being run in pilot plant-scale reactors. These...
Journal of Natural Products
February 20, 2020
Alexander M. Sherwood, Adam L. Halberstadt, Adam K. Klein et al.
79 citations
A general synthetic method was developed to access known tryptamine natural products present in psilocybin-producing mushrooms. In vitro and in vivo experiments were then conducted to inform speculations on the psychoactive properties, or lack thereof, of the natural products. In animal models, psychedelic activity by baeocystin alone was not evident using the mouse head twitch response assay,...
Synthesis
January 8, 2020
Robert B. Kargbo, Alexander M. Sherwood, Poncho Meisenheimer et al.
31 citations
Described herein is an improved synthesis of 3-[2-(dimethylamino)ethyl]-1H-indol-4-yl dihydrogen phosphate (psilocybin). The protocol outlines: synthesis of multigram quantities of psilocybin, identification of critical in-process parameters, and isolation of psilocybin without the use of chromatography, TLC, or aqueous workup. The synthesis furnishes psilocybin in five steps in 23% overall...