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Psilocybin research published in 2025

530 studies whose primary subject is psilocybin were published in 2025, up from 378 in 2024 and the most of any year since 2002. Newest first. Back to the psilocybin overview

Studies

Psilocybin: clinical potential, mechanistic insights, and biotechnological advances for scalable production.

World journal of microbiology & biotechnology December 31, 2025 José Islas-Vargas, Silvia Armenta, Ángeles Alitzel Rivera-Román et al. 2 citations

Psilocybin, a tryptamine-derived alkaloid from Psilocybe mushrooms, has emerged as a high-value biopharmaceutical candidate due to its promising applications in mental health. While clinical studies highlight its rapid and sustained antidepressant effects, current challenges lie in achieving scalable, reproducible, and cost-effective production to meet growing research and therapeutic demand....

High hopes? Precision psychedelic addiction medicine

Spiral (Imperial College London) December 30, 2025 Rayyan Zafar

Despite decades of neuroscience research and significant investment in addiction neuroimaging, clinical outcomes for individuals with substance use and behavioural addictions remain poor. Only 1.8% of people with substance use disorders receive effective treatment, highlighting a major disconnect between mechanistic understanding and clinical utility. This paper calls for a reorientation of...

Distinguishing 4- vs 5-Hydroxy- N , N -Dimethyltryptamine (Psilocin vs Bufotenine) Using Hydrogen–Deuterium Back-Exchange

Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry December 30, 2025 Michael W. Christopher, Boone M. Prentice, Timothy J. Garrett

Distinguishing metabolite isomers often relies on comparing relative data, such as relative chromatographic retention times and ion mobility arrival time orders, or relative product ion abundances. These approaches necessitate the need for quality reference data and/or chemical standards. An ideal method for differentiating isomers would leverage one of the absolute physiochemical properties of...

DOI: 10.1021/jasms.5c00421 (opens in new tab) Hydrogen–deuterium exchange Indole test Amine gas treating Moiety +7

Psilocybin Production With Genetically Modified Aspergillus nidulans Under Pressurized Conditions

Biotechnology and Bioengineering December 30, 2025 Sophie Weiser, Sidney Jung, Bettina Bardl et al. 1 citation

ABSTRACT Psilocybin, an indole alkaloid of psychedelic mushrooms, has the potential to sustainably improve the treatment of several psychiatric diseases. So far, the psilocybin demand for clinical trials has been met by chemical synthesis. In this study, we pursued the biotechnological approach to develop a psilocybin production process utilizing an overproduction strain of Aspergillus nidulans...

DOI: 10.1002/bit.70137 (opens in new tab) Psilocybin Bioprocess Tryptamine Biochemical engineering +7

Psilocybin as a Serotonergic Therapy in Epilepsy: Narrative Review of Therapeutic Potentials and Seizure Risks

December 29, 2025 Miguel Benjamín Cervera-Sánchez, Daniel San-Juan, Roberto Díaz-peregrino et al.

Background: Psilocybin has shown promise in neuropsychiatric disorders but presents a paradoxical relationship with seizures and epilepsy. Methods: A narrative review was conducted up to November 23, 2025. We conducted structured literature searches a

Low, non-psychedelic doses of psilocybin as a novel treatment for MASLD, obesity and type 2 diabetes via 5-HT2B receptor-dependent mechanisms

Pharmacological Research December 29, 2025 Martina Colognesi, Daniela Gabbia, Anna Signor et al. 3 citations

The therapeutic potential of low, non-psychedelic doses of psilocybin, a fungal tryptamine alkaloid, was investigated in metabolic disorders including obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and liver steatosis. Mice fed a high-fat/high-fructose diet received chronic treatment with psilocybin (0.05 mg/kg) for 12 weeks. Body weight, liver histology, insulin sensitivity, and skeletal muscle...

Efficacy and Safety of Psychedelics in Mental Disorder Cases: An Umbrella Review of Meta-Analyses of Randomized Controlled Trials

Journal of Clinical Medicine December 29, 2025 Monika Dominiak, Adam Gędek, Szymon Modrzejewski et al. 2 citations

Background: Psychedelic-assisted therapy is gaining renewed attention as a potential treatment for various mental disorders. Despite increasing numbers of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and meta-analyses, a comprehensive synthesis of the evidence across different substances and indications is lacking. This umbrella review aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of...

Adverse events associated with classic psychedelics and MDMA: a real-world population-based study using the WHO pharmacovigilance database (VigiBase)

Psychiatry Research December 29, 2025 Omer A. Syed, Sean M. Nestor, Muhammad Ishrat Husain et al. 1 citation

Psychedelic use has greatly increased within clinical and recreational settings over recent years. While demonstrating a favorable safety profile within certain clinical populations, little empirical research has explored safety of psychedelic use within real-world samples. Using the World Health Organization (WHO) VigiBase, a comprehensive global pharmacovigilance database with voluntary...

Comparing single‐ and repeat‐dose psilocybin with active placebo for migraine prevention in an exploratory randomized controlled clinical trial

Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain December 29, 2025 Emmanuelle A. D. Schindler, Christopher Gottschalk, Brian Pittman et al. 1 citation

Abstract Objective The goals of this study were to examine the therapeutic effects and safety of psilocybin given as a pulsed regimen for the prevention of migraine and to consider the blinding integrity of an active control agent. Background The administration of a single low dose of psilocybin was observed to have lasting therapeutic effects in one small pilot trial in migraine, although the...

A Nature-Themed Video Intervention Increases Nature Relatedness in Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy for Alcohol Use Disorder

Psychedelic Medicine December 26, 2025 Rhianna Rich, Kelsey T. Laird, Prabha Siddarth et al.

Background: Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy has shown promising results for treating alcohol use disorder (AUD) and other mental health conditions. Although the precise mechanisms of psychedelic therapies remain unclear, many studies report increased feelings of connectedness following psychedelic experiences. Specifically, both nature relatedness (one’s subjective sense of being connected...

A Systematic Review of the efficacy, safety, and Tolerability of Psychedelics in the Treatment of post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Current Treatment Options in Psychiatry December 26, 2025 Manasicha P. Wongpaiboon, Jackson L. Shelton, Eric Delgado Rendon et al.

Purpose A systematic review was conducted to synthesize the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of psychedelics including ketamine, MDMA, ayahuasca, LSD, DMT, ibogaine, and psilocybin in the treatment of PTSD. Recent Findings Among 5,155 studies identified, 42 studies met criteria and were included in our systematic review. Ketamine consistently produced rapid symptom improvement that attenuated...

The 3D-ASCr scale: A revalidation of the core dimensions of the Altered States of Consciousness Rating Scale 5D(11)-ASC for psychedelic research.

Journal of Psychopharmacology December 26, 2025 Kurt Stocker, Matthias Hartmann, Yasmin Schmid et al. 5 citations

The Altered States of Consciousness Scale (3/5D-ASC or 11-ASC) is widely used to assess non-ordinary states of consciousness, particularly for psychedelic research. However, its original dimensional model (3D-ASC within 5D-ASC) and later 11-subscale structure (11-ASC) have a hierarchically incompatible higher/lower-order structure. Although the 11-ASC offers superior model fit, the 3D-ASC...

Knowledge, perceptions, and use of psychedelics for mental health among autistic adults: An online survey

PLOS mental health December 26, 2025 Sahba Afsharnia, Vivian Liang, Yona Lunsky et al. 1 citation

Psychedelics such as psilocybin, LSD, and MDMA have shown promise in treating mental health conditions (e.g., depression, post-traumatic stress disorder) among neurotypical individuals, i.e., typically developing individuals without a diagnosed neurodevelopmental condition. However, their therapeutic potential for treating co-occurring mental-health conditions in autistic individuals remains...

Psilocybin decreases reward-seeking behavior accompanied by increased activity of parvalbumin neurons with perineuronal nets in the medial prefrontal cortex

bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) December 26, 2025 Jenna Houff, Andrew Williams, Obie Allen et al. preprint

ABSTRACT Clinical trials suggest that a single dose of psilocybin is an effective treatment for substance use disorders (SUDs). Choice impulsivity is a value-based decision-making bias that predicts drug-intake escalation and is commonly associated with SUDs. The dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) regulates choice impulsivity and is enriched with 5-HT 2A receptors that mediate effects of...

Evolution and horizontal transfer of the psilocybin biosynthetic gene cluster drive the diversification of magic mushrooms

Mycosphere December 25, 2025 Fei Liu, Jiaxin Li, Wen-Qiang Yang et al. 1 citation

Psilocybin, the psychoactive compound responsible for the hallucinogenic effects of “magic mushrooms,” is synthesized by a biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) traditionally associated with Psilocybe species. However, psilocybin production has also been identified in multiple genera across the Strophariaceae, Hymenogastraceae, and Galeropsidaceae families. Here, we sequenced the genomes of 30...

DOI: 10.5943/mycosphere/16/1/28 (opens in new tab) Psilocybin Horizontal gene transfer Gene duplication Genome +8

Data: Evolution and horizontal transfer of the psilocybin biosynthetic gene cluster drive the diversification of magic mushrooms

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) December 24, 2025 Fei Liu preprint

Psilocybin, the psychoactive compound responsible for the hallucinogenic effects of “magic mushrooms,” is synthesized by a biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) traditionally associated with Psilocybe species. However, psilocybin production has also been identified in multiple genera across the Strophariaceae, Hymenogastraceae, and Galeropsidaceae families. Here, we sequenced the genomes of 30...

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18046710 (opens in new tab) Psilocybin Horizontal gene transfer Genome Gene duplication +6

A Randomised, Triple-Blind, Dose-Finding Study of the Impact of Psilocybin on Motor Function in Healthy Participants

medRxiv December 23, 2025 Chiranth Bhagavan, Olivia Carter, Glenn Nielsen et al. 1 citation preprint

Abstract Background Psychedelics exert widespread effects on brain activity, but their impact on motor function is unclear. This is clinically relevant given the emerging interest in psychedelic-assisted physical therapy for disorders of motor function. This study’s primary objectives examined the feasibility and safety of administering movement tasks following low-to-moderate doses of...

Group Retreat Psilocybin Therapy for People with Metastatic Cancer with Anxiety and Depression: A Rite of Passage Facilitation Model for a Phase 1/2 Study

Psychedelic Medicine December 23, 2025 Anthony L. Back, Bonnie A. Mcgregor, Lindsay Billingsley et al. 1 citation

Background: Psilocybin therapy is an emerging treatment for cancer-related anxiety, depression, and existential distress. Most clinical trials to date have studied individual models of psilocybin therapy, but group models may offer increased access and benefits of community. Purpose: This technical report describes a group facilitation model developed for an food and drug administration...

The genus Psilocybe in Italy

Italian Botanist December 22, 2025 Giuseppe Venturella, Manuela Rollini, Giulia Mirabile et al.

In the absence of specific studies on the Psilocybe genus in Italy, we provide information on the taxonomy, habitat, ecology, and distribution of the nine taxa currently recorded for Italy. A nomenclatural update of Psilocybe taxa reported in the Checklist of Italian Fungi (Basidiomycetes), published in 2005, is provided and seven scientific binomials are confirmed. In addition, P. medullosa...

Allowing Similarities: Using Aldous Huxley’s Views on Mystical Experience to Assess the Import of Profound Unitive Experiences Occasioned by Psychedelic Substances

Religions December 22, 2025 Dana W. Sawyer

For more than four decades, the emphasis in the academic study of world religions has been on differences over similarities, and comparative analyses allowing for commonalities have become increasingly rare. This article argues that similarities nonetheless exist and should be studied. After disclaiming the judgment of other scholars that Aldous Huxley attempted to describe the “core” or...