Characterization and Identification of an Antimicrobial Compound Psilocybin from Psychedelic Mushroom.

Psilocybin, the main psychoactive compound in psychedelic mushrooms, also shows antimicrobial activity. Mushrooms collected in Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, were extracted and analyzed using HPTLC and LC-MS. The extracted psilocybin inhibited bacterial pathogens such as Staphylococcus epidermidis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa at a minimum inhibitory concentration of 12.5 µg/mL, and fungal pathogens including Candida tropicalis and Trichophyton rubrum at 6.25 µg/mL. These results suggest that psilocybin could serve as a basis for developing new antimicrobial drugs, pending further in vivo efficacy and toxicity testing.

Study at a glance

Abstract

The antimicrobial compound psilocybin possesses psychoactive properties with therapeutic applications. Psilocybin is the main component naturally present in psychedelic mushrooms and has been utilized in the treatment of depression and neurological disorders. In this study, psychedelic mushrooms were collected from Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu. They underwent solvent extraction using High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC) and Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS). Psilocybin, the primary compound, was extracted and evaluated. The extracted psilocybin was then assessed for antimicrobial activity against bacterial and fungal strains using the well diffusion method. Furthermore, HPTLC and LC-MS were employed for the identification of the psilocybin compound. The Rf values of psilocybin were found to be 0.73 and 0.77. Psilocybin inhibited the growth of bacterial and fungal pathogens including Staphylococcus epidermidis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida tropicalis, and Trichophyton rubrum. The bacterial culture was inhibited at a minimum inhibitory concentration of 12.5 µg/mL, whereas fungal pathogens were inhibited at 6.25 µg/mL. Thus, the findings conclude that in addition to its psychoactive properties, psilocybin could be utilized to develop antimicrobial drugs in future studies with in vivo efficacy and toxicity assays.