The concise large-scale syntheses of psilocin (1) and psilocybin (2), the principal hallucinogenic constituents of "magic mushroom", were achieved without chromatographic purification. The key step in the synthesis of 2 was the isolation of the dibenzyl-protected intermediate (7) as a zwitterionic derivative (8), which was completely identified by means of 2D NMR analyses.

Psilocybin is a classic (serotonergic) hallucinogen ("psychedelic" drug) that may occasion mystical experiences (characterized by a profound feeling of oneness or unity) during acute effects. Such experiences may have therapeutic value. Research and clinical applications of psychedelics usually include music listening during acute drug effects, based on the expectation that music will provide p...

This phenomenological research explored the fast-growing societal trend in psilocybin microdosing, whereby a sub-perceptual amount of psychedelic is consumed regularly. Anecdotal reports microdosing have suggested that individuals can experience relief depressive symptoms, greater creativity and focus, deeper connections, improvements several mental health issues. Research on lived however, lac...

This study is a long-term follow-up to the Concord Prison Experiment, one of the best-known studies in the psychedelic psychotherapy literature. The Concord Prison Experiment was conducted from 1961 to 1963 by a team of researchers at Harvard University under the direction of Timothy Leary. The original study involved the administration of psilocybin-assisted group psychotherapy to 32 prisoners...

Humans have used psychoactive mushrooms for medical, recreational, religious and ritual purposes since pre-history. Previous studies have clarified that psychoactive mushrooms produce psychoactive agents such as psilocybin, psilocin, ibotenic acid, and muscimol. However, the status of psychoactive mushrooms in most countries as illegal hallucinogens has prevented full investigation of their bio...

Introduction The use of hallucinogens has accompanied the human being throughout history. In 1970s, studies focused on therapeutic potential were blocked due to their misuse in young population. At present, psilocybin is re-emerging as center attention its possible different psychiatric pathologies such depression, anxiety or substance use. Objectives main objective this work been review recent...

Action of a hallucinogenic substance, psilocybin, on internal time representation was investigated in two double-blind, placebo-controlled studies: Experiment 1 with 12 subjects and graded doses, and Experiment 2 with 9 subjects and a very low dose. The task consisted in repeated reproductions of time intervals in the range from 1.5 to 5s. The effects were assessed by parameter kappa of the 'du...

Although transhumanism offers hope for the transcendence of human biological limitations, it generates many intrinsic and consequential ethical concerns. The latter include issues such as the exacerbation of social inequalities and the exponentially increasing technological capacity to cause harm. To mitigate these risks, many thinkers have initiated investigations into the possibility of moral...

Acute and enduring adverse effects of psilocybin have been reported anecdotally, but have not been well characterized. For this study, 1993 individuals (mean age 30 yrs; 78% male) completed an online survey about their single most psychologically difficult or challenging experience (worst "bad trip") after consuming psilocybin mushrooms. Thirty-nine percent rated it among the top five most chal...