Combining FTIR-ATR and OPLS-DA methods for magic mushrooms discrimination

Cátia Esteves; Elena M. M. de Redrojo; José Luis Manjón; Gabriel Moreno; Filipe E. Antunes; Gemma Montalvo; Fernando E. Ortega‐ojeda

doi:10.1016/j.forc.2022.100421

Combining FTIR-ATR and OPLS-DA methods for magic mushrooms discrimination

Cátia Esteves, Elena M. M. de Redrojo, José Luis Manjón, Gabriel Moreno, Filipe E. Antunes, Gemma Montalvo, Fernando E. Ortega‐ojeda

Forensic Chemistry April 8, 2022 DOI: 10.1016/j.forc.2022.100421 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract

Characteristics	Observational study Peer reviewed
Sample size	64
Population	Mushroom samples from different genera including hallucinogenic, edible, and toxic species
Topics	Psilocybin
Keywords	Mushroom Opls Aroma Food science Hallucinogen
Citations	19
Key findings	FTIR-ATR spectroscopy combined with OPLS-DA can discriminate hallucinogenic mushrooms from other species, offering a rapid, non-destructive screening method for forensic purposes.

Abstract

Magic mushrooms are naturally occurring fungi that are considered hallucinogenic drugs because they contain psilocybin and psilocin. These substances are controlled in almost every country in the world, so the use, possession, cultivation, and sale of magic mushrooms are prohibited in whole or in part. Despite this, the abuse of magic mushrooms continues and can put at risk the life of the consumer and society in general if the consumer behaves in an unsafe manner. The number of mushroom species is very high, making it difficult to correctly identify them based only on physical and morphological characteristics. Therefore, there is a need to develop non-destructive mushrooms analysis methods that have less response time and higher discrimination ability. The present work used Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR-ATR) Spectroscopy to study 64 mushroom samples from different genera including hallucinogenic, edible, and toxic species. In addition, this study used Orthogonal Partial Least Squares - Discriminant Analysis (OPLS-DA), using SIMCA chemometric software to analyse the obtained infrared (IR) spectra. The main molecular vibrations of the components of the fungus were successfully identified by IR spectroscopy. Although the specific bands corresponding to psilocybin or psilocin could not be assigned in the spectra, the regression method was able to discriminate the various species. Hallucinogenic mushrooms were well separated from other species, allowing the method to be used as an initial screening technique to determine whether or not the seized mushrooms are of forensic interest.

Comparable studies

Other observational and cohort studies on psilocybin, most cited first.

Study	Year	Design	Participants
Psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression: fMRI-measured brain mechanisms. Patients with treatment-resistant depression	2017	Observational cohort	n = 19
Psychedelic effects of psilocybin correlate with serotonin 2A receptor occupancy and plasma psilocin levels Healthy volunteers	2019	Observational cohort	n = 8
Increased spontaneous MEG signal diversity for psychoactive doses of ketamine, LSD and psilocybin Humans	2017	Observational study
Classic psychedelic use is associated with reduced psychological distress and suicidality in the United States adult population. USA adult respondents from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2008-2012)	2015	Observational cohort	n = 190,000
Prediction of Psilocybin Response in Healthy Volunteers Healthy volunteers	2012	Observational cohort	n = 409

Citations in the library

Cited by 3

Cites 13

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