Exploring Psilocybe spp. mycelium and fruiting body chemistry for potential therapeutic compounds
Adam Waldbillig, Maria Baranova, Sarah Neumann, Jonathan Andrade, Sharan Sidhu
Frontiers in Fungal Biology November 29, 2023 DOI: 10.3389/ffunb.2023.1295223 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Comparative metabolomic analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Psilocybe species at different life stages (mycelia, grain mycelia, and fruiting bodies) |
| Topics | Psilocybin |
| Keywords | Metabolomics Mycelium Indole alkaloid Metabolite Biochemistry Botany |
| Citations | 10 |
| Key points | The chemical composition of Psilocybe differs among mycelia, grain mycelia, and fruiting bodies, with fruiting bodies preferentially accumulating psilocybin, baeocystin, tryptophan, ergothioneine, and phenylethylamine, while mycelia have higher levels of alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine, N-acetylglucosamine, and trimethylglycine. |
Abstract
Psilocybe mushrooms, otherwise known as “magic” mushrooms, owe their psychedelic effect to psilocin, a serotonin subtype 2A (5-HT 2A ) receptor agonist and metabolite of psilocybin, the primary indole alkaloid found in Psilocybe species. Metabolomics is an advanced fingerprinting tool that can be utilized to identify the differences among fungal life stages that may otherwise be unaccounted for. In this study, by using targeted and untargeted (metabolomic) multivariate analysis, we demonstrate that the chemical composition of Psilocybe differs among mycelia, grain mycelia, and fruiting bodies. The preferential accumulation of psilocybin, baeocystin, tryptophan, ergothioneine, and phenylethylamine in fruiting bodies differentiated them from mycelia; however, the levels of alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine (α-GPC), N- acetylglucosamine, and trimethylglycine were found to be proportionally higher in mycelia than in fruiting bodies based on Pareto-scaled data. Considering the wealth of compounds with therapeutic potential that have been isolated from various fungal genera, it would be pertinent to study the compounds found in Psilocybe mycelia as potential naturally derived therapeutic targets.