Transcriptional regulation in the rat prefrontal cortex and hippocampus after a single administration of psilocybin
Journal of Psychopharmacology November 4, 2020 Oskar Hougaard Jefsen, Betina Elfving, Gregers Wegener et al. 123 citations
Psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in magic mushrooms, rapidly alters the activity of genes linked to neuroplasticity, with stronger effects in the prefrontal cortex than in the hippocampus. In rats given a single dose of 0.5–20 mg/kg, psilocybin increased expression of ten genes in the prefrontal cortex (including c-Fos, Fosb, and Nr4a1) and decreased one. In the hippocampus, it increased four genes (e.g., Sgk1, Dusp1) and decreased four others (e.g., Arc, Egr2). Protein levels for three key genes only partly matched the gene activity changes, indicating that measuring gene expression alone may not fully capture the drug's effects. These findings support psilocybin's potential to rapidly promote brain plasticity.