Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
January 9, 2024
Virginia Ramírez-Cruz, Giuliana Furci, Alexander J. Bradshaw et al.
30 citations
The psychedelic alkaloid psilocybin, driving Psychedelics and Drug Studies, first evolved in the mushroom genus Psilocybe around 67 million years ago. Evolutionary biology indicates its biosynthetic gene cluster transferred horizontally 4 to 5 times to other fungi between 40 and 9 million years ago. Using 71 fungal metagenomes, Phylogenetics of 2,983 gene families reveals Psilocybe's deep Biology. Two distinct psilocybin gene cluster arrangements correspond to major clades, suggesting independent acquisitions of this alkaloid's chemical synthesis, impacting Fungal Biology and Applications.
Applied and Environmental Microbiology
November 29, 2022
Virginia Ramírez-Cruz, Giuliana Furci, Paul Stamets et al.
29 citations
Psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in magic mushrooms, is being used therapeutically for depression, PTSD, and end-of-life care, highlighting the need for better understanding of the organisms that naturally produce it.
IMA fungus
January 1, 2025
Mara Ximena Haro-Luna, Felipe Ruan-Soto, Virginia Ramírez-Cruz et al.
2 citations
The use of Psilocybe zapotecorum, called Hongo Borracho, Hongo Santo, or in Zapotec Ni'to be'ya, for healing and divination continues in the Zapotec community of El Peral, San Antonino El Alto in Oaxaca, but its use is decreasing and the mushrooms are more difficult to find, likely due to changing climatic patterns. Some community members still sell these mushrooms. For the Zapotecs of El Peral, the mushrooms can do whatever is asked of them according to a ritual, and they are aware that outsiders use them recreationally, though they do not oppose it. This is the first formal record of Psilocybe mushroom use among Zapotecs of the Valles Centrales Region.
Journal of the Mexican Chemical Society
July 7, 2026
Aylín R. Tabal-Robles, J. Martin Torres-Valencia, Leticia Romero-Bautista et al.
A review of chemical studies on Psilocybe mushrooms, covering publications from 1958 to 2025, identified at least 50 different metabolites across 32 species. Most metabolites were alkaloids with indole structures, responsible for psychotropic properties, but amino acids, terpenoids, and saccharides were also reported. The genus comprises about 165 hallucinogenic species, yet information on non-alkaloid metabolites remains scarce.
Phytotaxa
February 16, 2026
Paula Santos da Silva, Virginia Ramírez-Cruz, Alexander J. Bradshaw et al.
Psilocybe, the genus of fungi known as 'magic mushrooms' that produce psychoactive compounds, is the focus of renewed research interest because of its potential as a therapy for the global mental health crisis. Examining 62 specimens representing 10 species from southern Brazil using morphological data and DNA sequences, this work reports new records of P. subaeruginascens and P. yungensis, expanding knowledge of their occurrence and geographic range. A novel species, Psilocybe araucariicola, is introduced and characterized through morphology and DNA sequencing. Phylogenetic analyses with rDNA ITS, rpb2, and tef1 sequences clarify its relationship to other Psilocybe species.