Research on Acute Toxicity and the Behavioral Effects of Methanolic Extract from Psilocybin Mushrooms and Psilocin in Mice
О. В. Жук, Іzabela Jasicka-Misiak, Anna Poliwoda, Anastasia Kazakova, В. В. Годован, Marek Halama, Piotr Wieczorek
Toxins March 27, 2015 DOI: 10.3390/toxins7041018 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Mice |
| Intervention | Psilocin |
| Dose | 1 mg/kg psilocin or extracts; 200 mg/kg 5-HTP |
| Measures | LD50, head-twitch response (HTR) |
| Topics | Psilocybin Serotonin |
| Keywords | Hallucinogen Acute toxicity Pharmacology Agonist |
| Citations | 64 |
| Key findings | Psilocin had the highest acute toxicity (LD50 293.07 mg/kg) and reduced head-twitch responses by about 60%, while mushroom extracts were less toxic and reduced head-twitches by about 30-46%, all acting as partial agonists on the serotonergic system. |
Abstract
The pharmacological activities and acute toxicity of the psilocin (PC) and dried residues of the crude extracts of psychotropic mushrooms were investigated in mice. The hallucinogenic substances were effectively isolated, by using methanol, from the species of Psilocybe semilanceata and Pholiotina cyanopus, that were collected in the north-east region of Poland. The chemical analysis of these extracts, which was performed by liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry detection (LC-MS), indicated the presence of psilocin and other hallucinogenic substances, including indolealkylamines and their phosphorylated analogues. When the pure psilocin or fungal extracts were used, slight differences in determined LD50 values were observed. However, the application of PC evoked the highest level of toxicity (293.07 mg/kg) compared to the activity of extracts from Ph. cyanopus and P. semilanceata, where the level of LD50 was 316.87 mg/kg and 324.37 mg/kg, respectively. Furthermore, the behavioral test, which considered the head-twitching response (HTR), was used to assess the effects of the studied psychotropic factors on the serotonergic system. Both, the fungal extracts and psilocin evoked characteristic serotoninergic effects depending on the dose administered to mice, acting as an agonist/partial agonist on the serotonergic system. A dose of 200 mg/kg 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) induced spontaneous head-twitching in mice (100% effect), as a result of the formation of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the brain. Compared to the activity of 5-HTP, the intraperitoneal administration of 1mg/kg of psilocin or hallucinogenic extracts of studied mushrooms (Ph. cyanopus and P. semilanceata) reduced the number of head-twitch responses of about 46% and 30%, respectively. In contrast, the administration of PC exhibited a reduction of about 60% in HTR numbers.