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Voters in Denver, a city at the forefront of the widening national debate over legalizing marijuana, have become the first in the nation to effectively decriminalize another recreational drug: hallucinogenic mushrooms.

The local ballot measure did not quite legalize the mushrooms that contain psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic compound. State and federal regulations would have to change to accomplish that.

But the measure made the possession, use or cultivation of the mushrooms by people aged 21 or older the lowest-priority crime for law enforcement in the city of Denver and Denver County. Arrests and prosecutions, already fairly rare, would all but disappear.

Continue reading “Denver Voters Support ‘Magic’ Mushrooms” »

Year 2022 😗😁

Foraging for fungi may not only mean mushrooms are on the menu. New research has shown that mushroom skins could provide a biodegradable alternative to some plastics used in batteries and computer chips, making them easier to recycle.

Researchers from the Johannes Kepler University in Austria were working on flexible and stretchable electronics, with a focus on sustainable materials to replace non-degradable materials, when they made their discovery, published in the journal Science Advances Friday.

Continue reading “Scientists have used mushrooms to make biodegradable computer chips” »

Mushrooms and other kinds of fungi are often associated with witchcraft and are the subjects of longstanding superstitions. Witches dance inside fairy rings of mushrooms according to German folklore, while a French fable warns that anyone foolish enough to step inside these ‘sorcerer’s rings’ will be cursed by enormous toads with bulging eyes. These impressions come from the poisonous and psychoactive peculiarities of some species, as well as the overnight appearance of toadstool ring-formations.

Given the magical reputation of the fungi, claiming that they might be conscious is dangerous territory for a credentialled scientist. But in recent years, a body of remarkable experiments have shown that fungi operate as individuals, engage in decision-making, are capable of learning, and possess short-term memory. These findings highlight the spectacular sensitivity of such ‘simple’ organisms, and situate the human version of the mind within a spectrum of consciousness that might well span the entire natural world.

Before we explore the evidence for fungal intelligence, we need to consider the slippery vocabulary of cognitive science. Consciousness implies awareness, evidence of which might be expressed in an organism’s responsiveness or sensitivity to its surroundings. There is an implicit hierarchy here, with consciousness present in a smaller subset of species, while sensitivity applies to every living thing. Until recently, most philosophers and scientists awarded consciousness to big-brained animals and excluded other forms of life from this honour. The problem with this favouritism, as the cognitive psychologist Arthur Reber has pointed out, is that it’s impossible to identify a threshold level of awareness or responsiveness that separates conscious animals from the unconscious. We can escape this dilemma, however, once we allow ourselves to identify different versions of consciousness across a continuum of species, from apes to amoebas. That’s not to imply that all organisms possess rich emotional lives and are capable of thinking, although fungi do appear to express the biological rudiments of these faculties.

Denver is set to become the first city in the nation to effectively decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms after final ballot-counting flipped Initiative 301’s margin in favor of narrow passage.

A recent neuroimaging study shows psilocybin, found in magic mushrooms, significantly alters brain connectivity in alcohol-dependent rats. This mirrors effects seen in humans, offering new avenues for researching the therapeutic impact of psychedelics.

Psilocybin has antidepressant-like effects and can improve cognitive function in a rat model of depression induced by chronic stress, according to new research published in Psychedelic Medicine. The findings provide new insights into the potential therapeutic applications of psychedelic substances and highlight the need for further research in this area to fully comprehend the underlying mechanisms.

Psilocybin is a naturally occurring psychedelic compound found in certain species of mushrooms, often referred to as “magic mushrooms” or “shrooms.” In recent years, there has been a growing interest in studying psilocybin and other psychedelics for their potential therapeutic effects. Psychedelics have shown promising rapid and persistent antidepressant effects in humans and animals. However, the exact mechanism behind these effects is not fully understood.

To investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for the antidepressant effects of psychedelics, the researchers used an appropriate animal model of depression. They chose a chronic stress-based model for greater translational value, as chronic stress is known to be a significant factor in depression. They specifically focused on female rats, as women are more susceptible to depression than men.

A single dose of psilocybin, the active compound in “magic mushrooms,” given to mice prompted a long-lasting increase in the connections between neurons.

In a new study, Yale researchers show that a single dose of psilocybin given to mice prompted an immediate and long-lasting increase in connections between neurons. The findings are published July 5 in the journal Neuron.

Individuals suffering from severe depression may find relief from just a single dose of a synthetic version of psilocybin, or “magic mushrooms,” according to a new study published this week.

The findings, which were published Wednesday by The New England Journal of Medicine, come from a double-blind trial involving 233 “randomly assigned adults with treatment-resistant depression [who received] a single dose of a proprietary, synthetic formulation of psilocybin at a dose of 25 mg, 10 mg, or 1 mg (control), along with psychological support.”

“In this phase 2 trial involving participants with treatment-resistant depression, psilocybin at a single dose of 25 mg, but not 10 mg, reduced depression scores significantly more than a 1-mg dose over a period of 3 weeks but was associated with adverse effects,” the authors wrote in their conclusions, adding that “larger and longer trials, including comparison with existing treatments, are required to determine the efficacy and safety of psilocybin for this disorder.”

Psilocybin, the psychedelic compound in magic mushrooms, may help people with alcohol dependencies abstain from drinking. Nearly half of those who took the drug as part of a 12-week therapy programme no longer drank more than eight months later, according to results from the largest trial to date on psilocybin and addiction.

Michael Bogenschutz at NYU Langone Health in New York and his colleagues recruited 95 adults who were diagnosed with alcohol dependence. None of the participants had any major psychiatric conditions or had used psychedelics in the past year.

Everyone in the group went through a 12-week therapy programme. Most weeks, they had a roughly 1-hour long session with a therapist and a psychiatrist where they received cognitive behavioural therapy for alcohol use disorder.