The evolution and ecology of psilocybin in nature

Meyer, Matthew J.; Slot, Jason C.

doi:10.1016/j.fgb.2023.103812

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 288 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Despite its prominence in the scientific and public imagination, experimental evidence for the ecological role of psilocybin is largely lacking and speculation reigns supreme, as thoroughly investigated and reviewed in Meyer and Slot (2023) ( 53 ). Psilocybin is a prodrug that is rapidly converted to the dephosphorylated psilocin, which mimics serotonin and binds tightly to serotonin receptors, especially 5-HT 2A , a pharmacological action common to psychedelics ( 54 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylogenomics of the psychoactive mushroom genus Psilocybe and evolution of the psilocybin biosynthetic gene cluster

Bradshaw,

Ramírez-Cruz,

Awan

et al. 2024

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Psychoactive mushrooms in the genus Psilocybe have immense cultural value and have been used for centuries in Mesoamerica. Despite the recent surge of interest in these mushrooms due to the psychotherapeutic potential of their natural alkaloid psilocybin, their phylogeny and taxonomy remain substantially incomplete. Moreover, the recent elucidation of the psilocybin biosynthetic gene cluster is known for only five of ~165 species of Psilocybe , four of which belong to only one of two major clades. We set out to improve the phylogeny of Psilocybe using shotgun sequencing of fungarium specimens, from which we obtained 71 metagenomes including from 23 types, and conducting phylogenomic analysis of 2,983 single-copy gene families to generate a fully supported phylogeny. Molecular clock analysis suggests the stem lineage of Psilocybe arose ~67 mya and diversified ~56 mya. We also show that psilocybin biosynthesis first arose in Psilocybe , with 4 to 5 possible horizontal transfers to other mushrooms between 40 and 9 mya. Moreover, predicted orthologs of the psilocybin biosynthetic genes revealed two distinct gene orders within the biosynthetic gene cluster that corresponds to a deep split within the genus, possibly a signature of two independent acquisitions of the cluster within Psilocybe .

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%