Psilocybin for Addiction, Plastic-Eating Fungus, and World's Largest Wildlife Bridge

IN TODAY’S EDITION

1️⃣ Psilocybin and heroin-seeking rats 2️⃣ A Psychedelic and Consciousness Studies master’s program 3️⃣ A fungus that breaks down polyethylene

Hi Shroomer. As Google rolls out AI Overviews, I’ve seen a lot of information across mushroom species that’s just plain wrong. When it comes to foraging, trust the pros and not your bros, especially if your bro is AI.

Shannon Ratliff, Co-Founder

EYE CANDY

I am a moth to the lamp 💡 Cozy lighting? ✔ A magically mini mushroom world? ✔ The irresistible urge to buy every neon-colored mushroom lamp in the shop? ✔ That’s how @thesnowmade rolls. Check out her shop of mushroom-inspired lamps and light dioramas right here.

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Antifungal action 💪 Fungicides kill plant- and human-based pathogens not through perforating fungal cells as previously thought but by increasing mitochondria activity, resulting in toxic byproducts and “cell suicide”.

Trichophyton indotineae ⚠ A drug-resistant fungus is causing severe skin infections, with 11 cases identified in New York City in the past year.

Addiction studies 🧬 A single dose of psilocybin reduced heroin-seeking activity in rats — even regulating a subset of genes linked to relapse behaviors.

PSILOCYBIN & LEGISLATION

Your move, DEA 😏 The U.S. Government Accountability Office recommends that the DEA improve its petition process regarding religious exemptions for psilocybin use, noting the timeline can take anywhere from 8 months to 3 years.

Psilocybin in Colorado 🏔 The key to Colorado’s psychedelic legislation rollout? Actively tracking patients’ medication interactions, their motivations for using psychedelics, any adverse effects, and the training of their providers.

International approval 🌎 Health Canada and the U.S. FDA have authorized Filament Health for Phase 2 clinical testing of its psilocybin-based treatment for methamphetamine addiction.

Clear for export ✈ Vancouver’s Optimi Health was awarded a Drug Establishment License from Health Canada, with approval to export psilocybin capsules to Australia for patients with PTSD and treatment-resistant depression.

World’s first 🎓 The University of Ottowa will launch a master’s program in Psychedelic and Consciousness Studies, with courses ranging from neuroscience and psychedelic-assisted interventions to comparative mysticism.

GROWING GOURMET

Better than buttons? 🥘 Cremini mushrooms might be the same species as their white button mushroom siblings, but the longer growing time of a cremini gives you a deeper flavor that is well worth adding to your favorite recipes.

My Kynda burger 🍔 Germany’s Kynda is building a factory to turn food waste byproducts (soy-, oat- and rice-okara) into “meat” in just 48 hours. 

Mushroom waste > topsoil? 🌱 Mixing nursery soil with an equal proportion of spent mushroom substrate helps improve rice seedling quality by promoting root growth and elevating protein concentration.

Ecological anarchy 😨 UK experts are warning mushroom cultivators not to grow non-native species to preserve the biodiversity of native fungi.

REGIONAL SPOTLIGHT

Heads-up, UK shroomers 🎉 The All Things Fungi Festival returns for its second year! You can look forward to a weekend of art, music, lectures, demonstrations, and UV nightwalks from September 13-15 in West Sussex, UK.

Just days away 🏔 The first annual Denver Shroom Fest is this Sunday, June 9th! There’s still time to grab your ticket to see the mushroom art installations, on-site mushroom testing, and “psychedelic learning opportunities”.

Animal pathways 🐾 Los Angeles County plans to build the world’s largest wildlife bridge, which will give everyone from mountain lions and bobcats to snakes and lizards a safer way to cross the 8-lane highway. 

By Veterans for Veterans 🤝 Virginia’s Mission Mushroom is helping Veterans get involved with mushroom cultivation, providing jobs, a support network, and of course, mushrooms for Vets suffering from PTSD.

MUSHROOM MISCELLANY

Smell that? 🐶 A 7-year-old Italian water dog named Daisy was trained to detect the endangered tea tree finger fungus, opening the doggy door for future canine-assisted mushroom conservation efforts.

Plastic beach 🌊 Researchers have isolated a fungus from ocean plastic that can break down floating polyethylene once UV light kick-starts the process.

Concrete vs. shrooms 🧱 In the race for sustainable building materials, the data show that mushroom “bricks” are only as efficient as the local electricity source that powers their production.

FUNGUS OF THE WEEK

Field mushroom (Agaricus campestris)

A versatile delight 🧺 A wildly delicious mushroom, they’re closely related to white buttons. Found in grassy areas or fields after rain, they also might pop up on your lawn and have been known to form fairy rings. Identify a field mushroom by its pink gills that deepen to reddish brown.

QUESTION OF THE DAY

If you made it this far, we’d love to know your thoughts on psilocybin legalization.

On Tuesday, we asked how many of you grow mushrooms. 46% of shroomers have never grown mushrooms, while 27% of you are active cultivators. 18% have tried to grow mushrooms, but were unsuccessful, and 9% used to grow, but no longer do.

SPREAD THE SPORES

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