Mycosphere
December 25, 2025
Fei Liu, Jiaxin Li, Wen-Qiang Yang et al.
1 citation
Psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in magic mushrooms, is made by a biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) once thought unique to Psilocybe species but now found across multiple genera. Sequencing genomes of 30 psilocybin-producing species and comparing them with over 20,000 bacterial, plant, and fungal genomes suggests the BGC originated from endogenous fungal genes through duplication and rearrangement, not from horizontal gene transfer from nonfungal sources. Four independent horizontal transfer events and three BGC configurations were identified. Transcriptomic analysis showed high expression of the PsiK gene in mycelium, while PsiH and PsiM were inactive, matching the absence of psilocybin in mycelial tissue. The BGC's evolution, along with a coprophilous (dung-inhabiting) habit, points to a post-Cretaceous-Tertiary radiation linked to the rise of mammals and grasslands.
Frontiers in psychiatry
January 1, 2025
Zixuan Zeng, Fei Liu, Chenyi Zhu et al.
1 citation
Chronic insomnia disorder affects many people and is usually treated with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT-I), but about 20% of patients do not respond well. Mindfulness may improve CBT-I outcomes, and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) has shown effectiveness for insomnia. This protocol describes a planned two-armed, parallel-group randomized controlled trial with 80 Chinese adults who have chronic insomnia. Participants will be randomly assigned to either a therapist-guided internet-based MBCT for insomnia (iMBCT-I) program or a sleep hygiene education program. Assessments occur at baseline, week 8 (end of intervention), and week 20 follow-up, with insomnia severity at week 8 as the primary outcome. This is the first test of therapist-guided iMBCT-I for chronic insomnia.
IMA fungus
January 1, 2026
Mao-Qiang He, Wen-Qiang Yang, Dorji Phurbu et al.
The hallucinogenic mushroom group Panaeolus sensu lato, commonly found on dung and in grasslands, is shown through phylogenomic, multigene phylogenetic, molecular clock, and morphological analyses to form a distinct family, Galeropsidaceae, separate from Bolbitiaceae. The family's taxonomy is revised: accepted genera are Panaeolus and Staktophyllus, with Crucispora and Panaeolopsis synonymized under Panaeolus. Three subgenera are recognized in Panaeolus, including one new subgenus, and eight new species are proposed. Psilocybin production was tested in 14 species using HPLC-MS; two species—the known P. cinctulus and the new P. subfoenisecii—are confirmed to produce psilocybin. The evolution of dung-inhabiting and psilocybin-producing traits in Panaeolus is discussed using phylogenetic relationships and divergence times.
Global Biodiversity Information Facility
January 1, 2026
Mao-Qiang He, Wen-Qiang Yang, Dorji Phurbu et al.
A group of hallucinogenic mushrooms, Panaeolus sensu lato, is shown to belong to a distinct family, Galeropsidaceae, separate from Bolbitiaceae, based on phylogenomic, multigene phylogenetic, molecular clock, and morphological analyses. The taxonomic system of Galeropsidaceae is revised: it contains the genera Panaeolus and Staktophyllus, while Crucispora and Panaeolopsis are synonymized under Panaeolus. Three subgenera are accepted in Panaeolus. Eight new species and one new subgenus are proposed. Species from China are documented with descriptions and illustrations. Testing 14 species for psilocybin using HPLC–MS confirmed that the known species P. cinctulus and the new species P. subfoenisecii possess psilocybin-producing traits. The evolution of the coprophilous lifestyle and psilocybin-producing traits is discussed.