A Review of Synthetic Access to Therapeutic Compounds Extracted from Psilocybe.

Psychedelic compounds found in Psilocybe mushrooms are being studied for treating central nervous system disorders, but obtaining enough pure material from fungi for research is challenging. This review examines synthetic chemistry methods to produce these molecules, covering classic historical syntheses, modern metal-catalyzed coupling reactions, and biocatalytic approaches. The authors note that alternative synthetic routes will likely be needed as therapeutic interest in these compounds grows.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Psychedelics are used for various pathologies of the central nervous system and are currently the subject of much research, some of which relates to the compounds contained in various Psilocybe-type hallucinogenic mushrooms. It is difficult, however, to obtain and purify sufficient quantities of these compounds from fungi to carry out biological studies, hence the need to develop simple and efficient synthetic routes. We review here the various syntheses used to obtain these molecules, focusing first on the classic historical syntheses, then the use of more recent metallo-catalyzed couplings and finally the known biocatalytic methods for obtaining these molecules. Other access routes are certainly possible and should be the subject of future research given the therapeutic interest of these compounds.