www.marijuanamoment.net
Open in
urlscan Pro
2606:4700:3032::6815:17e7
Public Scan
URL:
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/psilocybin-mushrooms-may-date-to-the-time-of-the-dinosaurs-or-at-least-their-demise-study-finds/
Submission: On February 22 via manual from US — Scanned from DE
Submission: On February 22 via manual from US — Scanned from DE
Form analysis 3 forms found in the DOM
GET https://www.marijuanamoment.net/
<form method="get" id="searchform" action="https://www.marijuanamoment.net/">
<input type="text" name="s" id="s" value="Search" onfocus="if (this.value == "Search") { this.value = ""; }" onblur="if (this.value == "") { this.value = "Search"; }">
<input type="hidden" id="searchsubmit" value="Search">
</form>POST
<form id="mc4wp-form-2" class="mc4wp-form mc4wp-form-869" method="post" data-id="869" data-name="Marijuana News In Your Inbox">
<div class="mc4wp-form-fields">Get our daily newsletter. <p>
<label>Email address: </label>
<input type="email" name="EMAIL" placeholder="Your email address" required="">
</p>
<p>
<input type="submit" value="Sign up">
</p>
</div><label style="display: none !important;">Leave this field empty if you're human: <input type="text" name="_mc4wp_honeypot" value="" tabindex="-1" autocomplete="off"></label><input type="hidden" name="_mc4wp_timestamp"
value="1708640176"><input type="hidden" name="_mc4wp_form_id" value="869"><input type="hidden" name="_mc4wp_form_element_id" value="mc4wp-form-2">
<div class="mc4wp-response"></div>
</form>POST
<form id="mc4wp-form-3" class="mc4wp-form mc4wp-form-869" method="post" data-id="869" data-name="Marijuana News In Your Inbox">
<div class="mc4wp-form-fields">Get our daily newsletter. <p>
<label>Email address: </label>
<input type="email" name="EMAIL" placeholder="Your email address" required="">
</p>
<p>
<input type="submit" value="Sign up">
</p>
</div><label style="display: none !important;">Leave this field empty if you're human: <input type="text" name="_mc4wp_honeypot" value="" tabindex="-1" autocomplete="off"></label><input type="hidden" name="_mc4wp_timestamp"
value="1708640176"><input type="hidden" name="_mc4wp_form_id" value="869"><input type="hidden" name="_mc4wp_form_element_id" value="mc4wp-form-3">
<div class="mc4wp-response"></div>
</form>Text Content
* Politics
* Science & Health
* Culture
* Business
* Video
* Newsletter
* Subscribe
* Remove Ads
* Bill Tracking
* About
* Login Instructions
* All 2024 Cannabis Bills
* Bill Hearing Calendar
* About Marijuana Moment
* Support Marijuana Moment
* Subscribe To Newsletter
Connect with us
*
*
*
MARIJUANA MOMENT
PSILOCYBIN MUSHROOMS MAY DATE TO THE TIME OF THE DINOSAURS (OR AT LEAST THEIR
DEMISE), STUDY FINDS
* Politics
* New Jersey Marijuana Sales Officially Top $2 Billion Since 2018, Top
Regulator Says, While Encouraging Lawmakers To Explore Home Grow
* New York State Has Collected Almost None Of Its $25 Million In Fines
Against Illicit Marijuana Stores
* Maryland Committees Take Up Psychedelics And Drug Decriminalization Task
Force Bills
* South Dakota Senate Approves Medical Marijuana ‘Guardrails’ For People On
Probation And Parole
* GOP Congressman Files Bill Directing VA To Update Lawmakers About
Psychedelic Medicine Access For Veterans
* Science & Health
* Psilocybin Mushrooms May Date To The Time Of The Dinosaurs (Or At Least
Their Demise), Study Finds
* Justice Department Researcher Says ‘We May Need Better Tests’ For
Marijuana Impairment, Questioning ‘Per Se’ THC Limits For Driving
* Marijuana Tax Revenue Should Fund Education And Housing, Not Police And
Prisons, Voters Say In New Poll
* Federally Funded Researchers Discover Two New Methods Of Distinguishing
Hemp And Marijuana To Assist Crime Labs
* Search Interest In Delta-8 THC Nearly Twice As High In States Without
Legal Marijuana, Study Finds
* Culture
* Rapper Killer Mike Suggests Giving Black People Control Over Marijuana
Industry As A Form Of Reparations
* Brooklyn Nets And New York Liberty Become First NBA And WNBA Teams To
Partner With CBD Company
* UFC Warns Fighters To Stop Using Marijuana ‘Immediately’ So They Aren’t
Punished Under California Athletics Rules
* Treasury Secretary Yellen Says She Over-Prepared For First Time Using
Marijuana And Jokes That It ‘Always Helps’ With Candy Crush
* NFL Partnering On New Study Using CBD To Treat Pain And Protect From
Concussions
* Business
* Missouri’s Marijuana Market Tallied More Than $1.4 Billion During First
Full Year Of Adult-Use Sales
* Missouri Marijuana Company Argues That Workers Are Not Allowed To Unionize
Due To Federal Law
* Multiple States Across The Country See Record-Breaking Marijuana Sales To
Close Out 2023
* Massachusetts Sets Marijuana Sales Record In December, With Total
Purchases In 2023 Reaching $1.8 Billion
* Missouri Sold More Than $1.3 Billion Worth Of Legal Marijuana In 2023,
State Figures Show
* Video
* Maryland Committees Take Up Psychedelics And Drug Decriminalization Task
Force Bills
* New Hampshire House Passes Marijuana Legalization Bill, Though Senate
Hurdles Remain On Way To Governor’s Desk
* Kansas Lawmakers Reject Marijuana Legalization Amendment
* Questioned On Equity, Minnesota Marijuana Regulator Tells Lawmakers Her
Son Is Incarcerated For Drugs
* Maryland Senate Approves Bill To Protect Medical Marijuana Patients’ Gun
Rights
* Newsletter
* DOJ researcher’s cannabis impairment testing concerns (Newsletter:
February 22, 2024)
* VA legal cannabis sales compromise in works (Newsletter: February 21,
2024)
* FDA touts cannabis scheduling review process (Newsletter: February 20,
2024)
* VP Harris reaching out to cannabis pardon recipients (Newsletter: February
19, 2024)
* DOJ’s new marijuana & hemp testing methods (Newsletter: February 16, 2024)
* Subscribe
* Remove Ads
* Bill Tracking
* About
* Login Instructions
* All 2024 Cannabis Bills
* Bill Hearing Calendar
* About Marijuana Moment
* Support Marijuana Moment
* Subscribe To Newsletter
SCIENCE & HEALTH
PSILOCYBIN MUSHROOMS MAY DATE TO THE TIME OF THE DINOSAURS (OR AT LEAST THEIR
DEMISE), STUDY FINDS
Published
1 day ago
on
February 21, 2024
By
Ben Adlin
Mushrooms of the genus Psilocybe appear to have begun producing the psychedelic
compound psilocybin roughly 67 million years ago, right around the time of the
dinosaurs’ demise, according to a newly published study led by researchers from
the University of Utah and the Natural History Museum of Utah.
The results also suggested that wood decomposition—as opposed to other preferred
niches like dung or soil—as “the ancestral ecology of Psilocybe,” though the
ability to produce psilocybin seems to have later jumped from some types of
fungi to others over tens of millions of years.
Authors noted that some past research has speculated that interaction with
termites “may have provided the selective force for the evolution of psilocybin
as a modulator of the symbiosis.”
Study finds cannabis increases productivity when working out
Study finds cannabis increases productivity when working out
Research study suggests cannabis use before physical activity could have
positive effects. FOX 5 NY's Kendall Green explains
More Videos
0 seconds of 2 minutes, 7 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled
Play/PauseSPACE
Increase Volume↑
Decrease Volume↓
Seek Forward→
Seek Backward←
Captions On/Offc
Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf
Mute/Unmutem
Decrease Caption Size-
Increase Caption Size+ or =
Seek %0-9
Next Up
A New Poll Finds That Floridians Want Legal Marijuana
00:46
facebook twitter Email pinterest
Linkhttps://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/FRe6nk5z
Copied
Live
00:00
01:48
02:07
The new report represents the largest-ever genomic diversity study for the genus
Psilocybe, according to a University of Utah announcement, and involved
analyzing dozens of specimens—including 39 species that had never before been
genetically sequenced.
Researchers then “bioinformatically mined the primary psilocybin [biosynthetic
gene cluster] and mapped the core genes on the phylogeny to investigate the
tempo, mode, and patterns of its evolution,” says the team’s dense, nine-page
research article published in the journal PNAS (Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences) earlier this month.
> “Molecular dating suggests psilocybin biosynthesis arose in Psilocybe ~67 mya,
> concurrent with the K-Pg mass extinction event.”
The project essentially allowed researchers to trace psilocybin-related gene
patterns back through an even more detailed family tree. The work helps shed
light on the evolutionary history of psychedelic fungi, including when
psilocybin production may have arisen and spread.
Physical interaction between wood-dwelling mushrooms and other fungi, authors
wrote, “may be one way the psilocybin [biosynthetic gene cluster] could be
transferred horizontally. However, the true vector of these [horizontal gene
transfers] is unknown.”
“That’s the beauty of it,” said Alexander Bradshaw, a postdoctoral researcher at
the University of Utah and the study’s lead author. “No one has really sequenced
type specimens at this scale, and now we get to produce molecular and genomic
data to the gold standard of Psilocybe types for people to compare against.”
Type specimens, the study explains, “are the ultimate authority for applying
names to other collections and are therefore essential references for accurately
naming and describing diversity.” But “outside of a handful of common species,”
it says, Psilocybe species “are not commonly collected, and many specimens are
represented by a single collection, making research with them tremendously
difficult.”
“This work represents a big step in the understanding of the evolutionary
relationships in Psilocybe because it is the first to include a broad species
sampling and is based on type specimens,” said Virginia Ramírez-Cruz, a
mycologist at the Universidad de Guadalajara and co-lead author of the study.
According to the university release, the study helps establish that psilocybin
was first synthesized in Psilocybe, “with four or five possible horizontal gene
transfers to other mushrooms from 40 [million] to 9 million years ago.”
The analysis further revealed “two distinct gene orders within the gene cluster
that produces psilocybin,” it says. “The two gene patterns correspond to an
ancient split in the genus, suggesting two independent acquisitions of
psilocybin in its evolutionary history. The study is the first to reveal such a
strong evolutionary pattern within the gene sequences underpinning the
psychoactive protein synthesis.”
Despite the strong likelihood of some horizontal transfers, authors wrote that
the presence of the psilocybin gene cluster in all the study’s
Psilocybe specimens—”suggests that the [gene cluster] is primarily inherited
vertically within the genus, although some patterns suggest this may not be the
only mechanism.”
The study’s senior author, Bryn Dentinger, curator of mycology at the National
History Museum of Utah, said the findings could help fuel future therapeutic
research.
“There’s a wealth of diversity of these compounds out there. To understand where
they are and how they’re made, we need to do this kind of molecular work to use
biodiversity to our advantage,” he said. “If psilocybin does turn out to be this
kind of wonder drug, there’s going to be a need to develop therapeutics to
improve its efficacy. What if it already exists in nature?”
The study doesn’t attempt to provide a definitive answer for the ecological role
of psilocybin. Disorientation or altered behavior in some animals, including
humans, might be either a deterrent (to protect the fungus) or an attractant (to
help spread spores), although authors note that because some species are scarce
and pharmacological effects may be delayed, it’s “difficult to imagine how
animals could learn to recognize them.”
Psilocybin may also be a historical defense against insect pests, although
“anecdotes and personal observations confirm that psilocybin-containing
mushrooms regularly have living insect larvae in them and they can be reared to
adults,” suggesting that any chemical defense properties “may be ineffective
against insects or that some insects may have evolved detoxifying capabilities
in response.”
Others hypothesize that it’s some sort of “inducible chemical defense system”
associated with the blue pigment that forms when psilocybin-containing mushrooms
are damaged. At that point, psilocybin is converted into psilocin, which forms
polymer chains that “produce reactive oxygen molecules that can damage gut
tissue.”
“They propose the ‘polymer hypothesis,'” the study’s authors explained of the
theory’s proponents, “where the psilocin oligo/polymers may be an inducible
defense against fungivory and psilocybin is simply the artillery and psilocybin
is simply the artillery kept in reserve for the true chemical weaponry.”
They note that the “the formation of the blue psilocin oligo/polymers is
invariably connected to psilocybin biosynthesis throughout the multiple
independent inheritances and convergent evolution.”
One possibility might be slugs—a hypothesis authors aim to test in future
research, according to the University of Utah:
“The authors are preparing experiments to test an alternative theory that they
call the Gastropod Hypothesis. The timing and divergence dates of Psilocybe
coincide with the KPg boundary, the geological marker of the asteroid that threw
Earth into a brutal, prolonged winter and killed 80% of all life. Two lifeforms
that thrived during the darkness and decay were fungi and terrestrial
gastropods. Evidence, including the fossil record, shows that gastropods had a
massive diversification and proliferation just after the asteroid hit, and it’s
known that terrestrial slugs are heavy predators of mushrooms. With the study’s
molecular dating of Psilocybe to around 65 million years ago, it’s possible that
psilocybin evolved as a slug deterrent.”
Institutions worldwide sent specimens to be sequenced as part of the study, the
university’s release said, including some that were collected more than 150
years ago.
“It’s impossible to overstate the importance of collections for doing studies
like this,” Bradshaw said. “We are standing on the shoulders of giants, who
spent thousands of people-power hours to create these collections, so that I can
write an email and request access to rare specimens, many of which have only
ever been collected once, and may never be collected again.”
As far as human use of psilocybin mushrooms goes, separate research suggests
humans have been ingesting them for potentially millions of years. Use of
marijuana, by contrast, is believed to be more recent.
Studies published last year and in 2019 suggest that humans first began using
plants of the genus Cannabis about 10,000 years ago, initially using hemp for
fibers and nutrition.
Consuming cannabis for its experiential effects, meanwhile, seems to date back
roughly 3,000 years. A Chinese emperor about 2,700 B.C.E. described the plant as
“a first-class herb.”
Cannabis and the genus that contains hops—marijuana’s closest living
relative—diverged about 28 million years ago, according to a 2018 study.
Another study suggests the rise of cannabinioids like THC and CBD may have been
the result of genetic mischief at the hands of ancient viruses.
> Scientists Discover The Exact Reason Marijuana Causes The ‘Munchies’ In New
> Federally Funded Study
Photo courtesy of Dick Culbert.
Marijuana Moment is made possible with support from readers. If you rely on our
cannabis advocacy journalism to stay informed, please consider a monthly Patreon
pledge.
Related Topics:featured
Don't Miss
Justice Department Researcher Says ‘We May Need Better Tests’ For Marijuana
Impairment, Questioning ‘Per Se’ THC Limits For Driving
Ben Adlin
Ben Adlin, a senior editor at Marijuana Moment, has been covering cannabis and
other drug policy issues professionally since 2011. He was previously a senior
news editor at Leafly, an associate editor at the Los Angeles Daily Journal and
a Coro Fellow in Public Affairs. He lives in Washington State.
YOU MAY LIKE
New Jersey Marijuana Sales Officially Top $2 Billion Since 2018, Top Regulator
Says, While Encouraging Lawmakers To Explore Home Grow
New York State Has Collected Almost None Of Its $25 Million In Fines Against
Illicit Marijuana Stores
Maryland Committees Take Up Psychedelics And Drug Decriminalization Task Force
Bills
South Dakota Senate Approves Medical Marijuana ‘Guardrails’ For People On
Probation And Parole
GOP Congressman Files Bill Directing VA To Update Lawmakers About Psychedelic
Medicine Access For Veterans
Biden Pushed To Reschedule Marijuana By Veterans And Law Enforcement
Groups—Including One That Has DEA Head As A Member
Advertisement
MARIJUANA NEWS IN YOUR INBOX
Get our daily newsletter.
Email address:
Leave this field empty if you're human:
SUPPORT MARIJUANA MOMENT
*
*
*
* About Marijuana Moment
* Subscribe
* Sponsorship and Advertising
* Privacy Policy
All the cannabis news you need, all in one place. Copyright © 2017-2024
Marijuana Moment LLC ® and Tom Angell
Update Privacy Preferences
A Raptive Partner Site
MARIJUANA NEWS IN YOUR INBOX
Get our daily newsletter.
Email address:
Leave this field empty if you're human:
×