ACS OmegaOctober 9, 2026Evangelos Dadiotis, Romanos Konstantinos Antonopoulos, Antigoni Cheilari et al.
Abstract The genus Psilocybe (Basidiomycota) comprises over 300 mushroom-forming species, many of which produce the secondary metabolite psilocybin, a prodrug of its dephosphorylated active metabolite psilocin. Psilocybin has recently attracted significant interest, with numerous active, recruiting, and completed clinical trials registered on ClinicalTrials.gov, primarily investigating its...
This study revisits the hypothesis that Claviceps purpurea (Fr.) Tul., a fungus infecting cereals and producing ergot alkaloids (EAs), was the psychedelic agent in kykeon, the sacred elixir of the Eleusinian Mysteries. Although archaeological evidence supports this link, experimental data confirming the transformation of toxic ergopeptides into psychoactive lysergic acid amide derivatives in...