Psilocybin seems to help tobacco smokers quit; Scientists discover a new species of psychedelic mushroom in Africa
Plus: Minnesota lawmakers advance psilocybin-assisted therapy bill and Mississippi lawmakers approve ibogaine research bill; Psychedelics with exercise to treat major depressive disorder?
Happy Friday and welcome back to The Microdose, an independent journalism newsletter brought to you by the U.C. Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics.
Psilocybin shows promise over nicotine patches to help tobacco smokers quit
As researchers continue to explore psychedelics’ potential in addiction treatment, a recent pilot trial found psilocybin prevailed over a nicotine patch in a test to help tobacco smokers quit.
Results from the randomized clinical trial were published Tuesday in JAMA Network Open. Researchers recruited 82 tobacco smokers at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center and randomly assigned them to receive either a relatively high (30 mg) dose of psilocybin or weeks of using a nicotine patch. Both treatment conditions were paired with 13 weeks of cognitive behavioral therapy designed to help smokers quit.
Those who received a single dose of psilocybin were over six times more likely to have remained abstinent after six months than participants who used nicotine patches. About 40% of the psilocybin group successfully stopped smoking, whereas only 10%, or 4 people, in the patch group quit. Cigarette smoking is a leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., and 2022 data shows fewer than 10% of adult smokers successfully quit in the past year.
Tobacco dependence researcher Megan Piper, who wasn’t involved in the trial, told NPR the findings suggest a promising new treatment option, but will need to be replicated in a larger, more diverse study. The researchers who led the trial are currently testing psilocybin for tobacco use disorder in a Phase 2 clinical trial with a placebo condition. Tobacco use disorder is a chronic and relapsing addiction to tobacco products characterized by an inability to quit.
Scientists discover a new species of psychedelic mushroom in Africa
Scientists discovered a new species of psychedelic mushroom from sub-Saharan Africa. The study, published Wednesday in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, describes the new species, Psilocybe ochraceocentrata, as a close relative of the well known Psilocybe cubensis. “This discovery sheds light on the wild origins of domesticated P. cubensis and provides new genetic resources for research on psychedelic mushrooms,” the researchers write. Using genetic analyses, the researchers suggest the two species likely diverged from a common ancestor approximately 1.5 million years ago. The discovery hints at the evolutionary origins of Psilocybe mushrooms, which has been debated.
The study authors suggest the two species, whose spores commonly spread on animal dung, diverged through “global ecological shifts” such as the migration of Homo erectus and grazing herbivores out of Africa and the trans-Atlantic dispersal of grass seeds and dung beetles from Africa to South America. These shifts, which occurred more than a million years ago, “opened novel niches for dung-specialist fungi.”
The researchers say the newly discovered species was likely being misidentified as P. cubensis for years. “Incorrect species designations like this could lead to widespread confusion over the species identity of commercially sold Psilocybe,” the authors write.
The new species is one of seven in the Psilocybe genus that are native to Africa, they add. Altogether, there are approximately 160 species of Psilocybe, mostly documented in the Americas. There are likely many undocumented species in Africa due to less mycological survey work across the continent, the authors said.
Minnesota lawmakers advance psilocybin-assisted therapy bill. Plus, ibogaine research bill approved in Mississippi.
On Monday, Minnesota lawmakers in the House Health Finance and Policy Committee approved a bill that would state-legalize a psilocybin therapy program for adults 21 and older.
Under the bipartisan proposal, HF 2906, residents could receive psilocybin-assisted therapy “administered under strict supervision by a licensed facilitator.” The initial program would allow a maximum of 1,000 patients “with qualifying medical conditions” to receive the therapy in the first three years, with the guidance of no more than 50 registered facilitators. Qualifying conditions include posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, substance use disorders, anxiety, and chronic pain. The move follows a state task force recommendation to create a regulated clinical psilocybin program.
“It will help Minnesotans who are struggling with a wide variety of mental illnesses,” Representative Andy Smith (D) said Monday. “It builds on successful programs in other states like Oregon, Colorado and New Mexico.” The legislation sets aside money from the state’s general fund for management of the program. It also says registered facilitators can charge for their services.
The bill would also reschedule psilocybin and psilocin from Schedule I to IV on the state’s controlled substances list. Schedule I drugs are the most restricted and characterized as having high abuse potential and no accepted medical use. Also on Monday, the Minnesota State Senate introduced a separate bill aiming to eliminate criminal and civil penalties for psilocybin use and possession.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday Mississippi state senators voted to pass House Bill 314, which would create a system for ibogaine clinical trials. This appears to be the House version of SB 2561, which died in committee. According to lawmakers, the goal of the legislation is to provide the U.S. Food and Drug Administration with data on the safety and efficacy of ibogaine to treat conditions including opioid use disorder.The bill is returning to the state House with an amendment for a vote before it could advance to the governor’s desk.
It’s similar to other state-level ibogaine research bills across the nation, as it promises states intellectual property royalties if the drug is ultimately FDA approved. Under the bill, some state funding would be directed to the trials, perhaps opioid settlement funds. The amendment states that people leading the ibogaine trial must “plan to secure third-party payor approval for ibogaine treatment following approval by the FDA through: private insurers; Medicare; Medicaid; and the TRICARE program of the United States Department of Defense.”
Mississippi State Senator Josh Harkins (R) suggested Mississippi’s trial could have a “multiplier effect,” on ibogaine research already funded by laws passed in Texas and Arizona.
Psychedelics with exercise to treat major depressive disorder?
A commentary published March 7 in Discover Mental Health suggests psychedelics and exercise could be used together to treat major depressive disorder. Both approaches show promise alone, and could have “synergistic antidepressant effects,” psychedelics researchers Nicholas Fabiano, Robin Carhart-Harris and collaborators argue. “Exercise and psychedelics have numerous potential complementary mechanisms,” they write, warranting future research on their use together.
Both approaches boost glutamate, serotonin, neuroplasticity, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Exercise may even have the potential to sustain or enhance the effects of psychedelics, through psychological flexibility and default mode network connectivity, the authors add.
Athletes using psychedelics during sport isn’t a newfound idea. American baseball pitcher Dock Ellis famously threw a no-hitter game in 1970 while tripping on LSD. The professional surfer Darryl Virostko, nicknamed “Flea,” first surfed California’s giant Mavericks waves while high on LSD. (For more on athletics and psychedelics see our 5 Questions interview with sports psychologist Courtney Walton.)
Writer and emergency medicine doctor Clayton Dalton digs into the world of non-psychedelic psychedelic medicine in The New Yorker. This story was reported with the support of the Ferriss-UC Berkeley Psychedelic Journalism Fellowship.
Colorado transportation officials concerned about people driving while microdosing are urging residents to “plan your trip before you trip,” according to the Denver Post.
The New York Times reports that memoirist Amy Griffin, whose best-selling book The Tell recounts sexual abuse by a teacher in Texas, is being sued by a former classmate. The woman alleges that the abuse Griffin describes in her book was based on experiences she’d shared from her own life. Griffin, who is also a philanthropist in the psychedelic space, wrote about retrieving these repressed memories of abuse through MDMA therapy. Griffin’s lawyer denies the classmate’s charges.
A commentary published in Psychedelic Medicine discusses an increase in “naturalistic use” of psychedelics, citing data that shows reported psilocybin use in the past year rose 188% between 2019 and 2023 for U.S. adults 30 and above. The surge highlights a need for more robust epidemiological research to better understand risks and benefits, the authors argue.
On March 5, a United States District Judge sentenced a New York man to over 6 years in prison for trafficking MDMA by mail. Homeland Security investigations reportedly seized over 10 kilograms of MDMA as part of the case.
Got tips? Email us at themicrodose@berkeley.edu
 | A guest post by
|