Plants
August 31, 2020
Sanah Malomile Nkadimeng, Alice Nabatanzi, Christiaan M.l. Steinmann et al.
66 citations
Extracts from Psilocybe natalensis, a psilocybin-containing mushroom from South Africa, show anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects in lab tests on mouse immune cells. Boiling hot water, cold water, and ethanol extracts all reduced nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2, and interleukin 1β production in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated macrophages in a dose-dependent manner, similar to positive controls quercetin and N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester. The extracts were safe at the concentrations used. Phytochemical analysis confirmed the presence of natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds.
Scientific Reports
December 18, 2020
Sanah Malomile Nkadimeng, Christiaan M.l. Steinmann, J.n. Eloff
31 citations
The prevalence of major depression is higher in people with chronic heart failure than in the general population. Psilocybin-containing mushrooms have been used historically for their mind-healing properties, but their safety in cardiovascular disease is not fully known. This study investigated the effects of water extracts from Psilocybe cubensis and Panaeolus cyanescens on endothelin-1-induced pathological hypertrophy and TNF-α-induced cell injury in H9C2 cardiomyocytes. The extracts did not aggravate hypertrophy and protected against TNF-α-induced injury and cell death at the concentrations used. The results support medicinal safe use under controlled conditions and caution against higher concentrations.
Preprints.org
June 6, 2023
Sanah Malomile Nkadimeng, Christiaan M.l. Steinmann, J.n. Eloff
1 citation
preprint
Extracts from four psilocybin-containing mushrooms—Panaeolus cyanescens, Psilocybe natalensis, Psilocybe cubensis, and Psilocybe cubensis leucistic A+ strain—did not worsen angiotensin II-induced cardiac hypertrophy in rat heart cells and instead showed protective effects against oxidative stress. Angiotensin II reduced cell viability, increased cell width, and raised reactive oxygen species levels. The mushroom extracts, prepared with ethanol, cold water, or hot water, did not exacerbate these changes; they exhibited cardio-protective activity. Losartan, an angiotensin receptor blocker, served as a positive control. Phytochemical analysis detected known antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds in the extracts.