Effects of psilocin and psilocybin on human 5-HT4 serotonin receptors in atrial preparations of transgenic mice and humans
Toxicology Letters June 12, 2024 Joachim Neumann, Kiril Dimov, Karyna Azatsian et al. 5 citations
Psilocybin and psilocin, the hallucinogenic compounds in magic mushrooms, activate cardiac serotonin (5-HT4) receptors, increasing the force and rate of heart contractions. In isolated left and right atrial preparations from transgenic mice overexpressing the human 5-HT4 receptor, both drugs enhanced contraction force and beating rate, though their effects at 10 µM were weaker than those of 1 µM serotonin. No effects were seen in wild-type mice. In human atrial tissue, the positive inotropic effects required inhibition of phosphodiesterase III to become apparent. The effects were blocked by the 5-HT4 receptor antagonists tropisetron and GR125487, confirming that psilocybin and psilocin act as agonists on cardiac 5-HT4 receptors.