In Silico Studies on Psilocybin Drug Derivatives Against SARS-CoV-2 and Cytokine Storm of Human Interleukin-6 Receptor
Faez Iqbal Khan, Fakhrul Hassan, Dakun Lai
Frontiers in Immunology January 14, 2022 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.794780 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Computational screening study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Psilocybin |
| Keywords | Cytokine storm Pharmacology Psychotomimetic Biochemistry Hallucinogen Immunology Nmda receptor |
| Citations | 34 |
| Key points | Psilacetin, psilocin, and psilocybine from psilocybin-mushrooms bind to SARS-CoV-2 Mprotease, and psilacetin also binds to human interleukin-6 receptors, indicating potential anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity. |
Abstract
Various metabolites identified with therapeutic mushrooms have been found from different sources and are known to have antibacterial, antiviral, and anticancer properties. Over thousands soil growth-based mushroom metabolites have been discovered, and utilized worldwide to combat malignancy. In this study, psilocybin-mushroom that contains the psychedelic compounds such as psilacetin, psilocin, and psilocybine were screened and found to be inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 Mprotease. It has been found that psilacetin, psilocin, and psilocybine bind to Mprotease with −6.0, −5.4, and −5.8 kcal/mol, respectively. Additionally, the psilacetin was found to inhibit human interleukin-6 receptors to reduce cytokine storm. The binding of psilacetin to Mprotease of SARS-CoV-2 and human interleukin-6 receptors changes the structural dynamics and Gibbs free energy patterns of proteins. These results suggested that psilocybin-mushroom could be utilized as viable potential chemotherapeutic agents for SARS-CoV-2.