Horizontal gene cluster transfer increased hallucinogenic mushroom diversity
Evolution Letters February 27, 2018 Hannah T. Reynolds, Vinod Vijayakumar, Emile Gluck‐thaler et al. 114 citations
Psilocybin, the prodrug of the psychedelic compound psilocin, is produced by a phylogenetically scattered group of mushroom-forming fungi in the Agaricales. A psilocybin gene cluster was discovered in three hallucinogenic mushroom genomes, and evidence indicates its horizontal transfer between fungal lineages. The distribution and transmission patterns suggest that psilocybin synthesis may have provided a fitness advantage in dung and late wood-decay niches, which may serve as reservoirs of fungal indole-based metabolites that alter the behavior of mycophagous and wood-eating invertebrates. These genomes will serve as models in neurochemical ecology, advancing the prospecting and synthetic biology of novel neuropharmaceuticals.