Psilocybin for Postpartum Depression, Rare Truffle Find, and Mushroom Festivals Near You

IN TODAY’S EDITION

1️⃣ Psychedelics news from 2 universities
2️⃣ An interview with Moritz Schmid
3️⃣ Upcoming mushroom festivals

Hi Shroomer. Mushrooms are hope encapsulated for a few days. Mycelium is liminal, the in-between, the underneath, the all-around. The fungal lesson that good surges and sprouts is ever-necessary.

Shannon Ratliff, Co-Founder

EYE CANDY

How does your fave mushroom dance? 💃 We asked everyone we met at Texas Mushroom Conference to show us their moves. If I see you out and about this summer (see end of email), I’m asking you 😈 

@shroomer.life

our favorite Q tbh / shout out to all who did it with us ✌️ #mushrooms #fyp #dancechallenge #fungi @Myceliumatters @Twisted Tree Nursery @... See more

PSILOCYBIN & LEGISLATION

Psilocybin & seizures 🌀 A scoping review has critically examined the relationship between classic psychedelics, like psilocybin, and the risk of seizures, revealing no substantial evidence of increased seizure risk in non-epileptic individuals who use these substances without other drugs. This addresses the safety concerns of people interested in exploring the therapeutic benefits of psychedelics for mental health issues like depression and anxiety. The study even suggests that some psychedelics might offer protective effects against seizures in animal models.

Postpartum depression 🍼 RE104, a novel psychedelic prodrug related to psilocybin, has shown promising results in a phase 1 trial targeting postpartum depression (PPD). RE104 converts in the body to an active drug metabolite that influences serotonin receptors, like psilocybin, but is designed to have a shorter psychoactive effect to make the treatment more manageable. With the upcoming phase 2 RECONNECT trial, RE104 will be administered as a single dose to women with PPD, with the goal of significantly improving their quality of life.

A trial to learn more 🧪 A clinical trial in Adelaide, South Australia launched, dosing the first participant with TRP-8803, an intravenously infused psilocin. Conducted by CMAX Clinical Research, the trial, named the Healthy Human Volunteer Study, seeks to refine dosing and infusion rates to achieve precise blood levels of psilocin for psychedelic treatments.

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

Rare mushroom found 🔍️ A Czech amateur mycologist, Slavomír Valda, has unearthed a truffle-like mushroom, Sedecula pulvinata, in South Moravia, previously believed to exist only in the western United States. Miroslav Kolařík from the Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Microbiology shed light on the rarity: “In the United States it grows in dry, deciduous mountain forests, in an elevation of 2,000 metres and up. If you know the beautiful forests of Sierra Nevada, that’s the mushroom’s original habitat. But Pálava is very different. It’s a lowland, covered by broad-leaved oak forests.”

Terraforming ⛰️ A new literature review by a student at Stockholm University highlights the relationship between ectomycorrhizal fungi and geological weathering. Geological weathering is a natural process that breaks down rocks and minerals over time, shaping landscapes and forming soil, and even affects the carbon cycle. The review found that fungi contribute up to 28% of the weathering of apatite and 16% for olivine, much higher than more resistant minerals like feldspar, which clocks in at a mere 0.2% to 0.5%.

From the Op Eds 🍄 Regarding Parengyodontium album that eats plastic, Sam from the UK succinctly nailed why caution is key: “I agree… about the dangers of introducing this fungi… outside its existing ecology. In fact, it occurs to me that if we encourage plastic-eating microorganisms by selective breeding or gene editing, we might end up hoisted by our own petard. The non-biodegradability of plastics is one of the main reasons we use them, after all.”

GROWING GOURMET

99 recipes 🥘 “Cooking with Mushrooms” by Andrea Gentl is still underrated for how knowledgeable and flavor-focused these recipes are. We’ve tried Shroomy Nut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies, King Trumpet Schnitzel, Soupy Eggs and Chanterelles, the popcorn seasoning, and counting.

As learned in Pennsylvania 🐔 Grab your yellow oysters and use this trick to reveal the poultry secret at the center.

Growing a debut 📘 Author Adrian M. Gibson delights in the experiment of growing blue oyster mushrooms on a paperback book. I have to try this.

PSILOCYBIN & LEGISLATION

UC Berkeley and CU Denver launch psychedelic initiatives

2 big moves ♟️ UC Berkeley’s Center for the Science of Psychedelics (BCSP) launched a first-of-its-kind study to examine how psilocybin influences visual perception. Also this week, The University of Colorado, Denver (CU Denver) announced the new CU Center for Psychedelic Research to explore how psychedelics can be used to treat mental and neurological conditions, while investigating the economic and social impacts of psychedelic legalization and decriminalization in the state.

• The UC Berkeley study: Participants will ingest psilocybin and perform visual tasks while their brain activity is monitored using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Researchers will observe real-time changes in the visual cortex, one of the most well-understood parts of the brain. This marks the first time UC Berkeley is using human subjects to study psychedelics, following extensive preparation to meet all campus, state, and federal regulations. ➡️ Read more. 

• The CU Center for Psychedelic Research: “There is so much potential to find new ways we can help people… At the heart of our work is creative and careful science that may help improve quality of life for many people, including individuals in marginalized and traditionally underserved groups,” said Dr. Jim Grigsby, the center’s chief science officer and executive director. The center will train clinical practitioners and individuals seeking state credentials to administer psychedelics under Colorado’s Proposition 122, and will create evidence-based public policy recommendations. ➡️ Read more.

• Broader implications: This move places CU Denver among the ranks of other renowned institutions with facilities dedicated to psychedelic research, like UC Berkeley, Johns Hopkins University, New York University, and the University of Texas. These studies aren’t just about understanding psychedelics, they’re about rethinking and improving health care.

INTERVIEW

A celebrity photographer trades his camera for tranquility

Back to balance ⚖️ For over 20 years, Moritz Schmid was a jet-setting fashion and advertising photographer. As he traveled to nearly 90 countries, partied his “ass off,” and captured some of the world’s most famous faces through his lens, this self-professed city kid found himself desperately seeking a more balanced way of life. Eventually, he quit his longtime career to make the forest his office. His business, Into the Woods, offers retreats and workshops on the outskirts of Berlin, where he shares the gifts of forest bathing, mushroom foraging, art making, and re-embodiment through the practices of swimming, Qi Gong, and yoga. - Vivian Kanchian

In his words 🎤 “It’s really something to see how easy it is to make people happy by just reconnecting them with nature. We live in a society in which everyone has their smartphone and their computer, and we’re constantly bombarded with information all day. Everything is human-made or AI-made…

“Although we have these super high-tech lives, and we’re always “connected,” it’s good to unplug every now and then and just get outside, forage for food, and look for the little things in life – like lichen, which is a micro-universe. It’s just so cool to see these tiny things, like mycelium, that, in reality, are so strong and have this immense power to connect everything. You don’t even see it, but it’s everywhere.” ➡️ Read more.

FORAGED FESTIVALS

shroomer.life

View more on Instagram

Here are some mushroom festival dates happening this summer/fall. Find us at every event highlighted, with more to come.

• Aug. 2-4: MycoFest in Centre Hall, PA

• Aug. 14-18: Telluride Mushroom Festival in Telluride, CO

• Sep. 7-8: Mushroom Festival in Kennett Square, PA

• Oct. 4-5: Gorge Fungi Foray in Trout Lake, WA

• Oct. 4-6: The Kentucky Mushroom Festival in Edmonton, KY

• Oct. 11-14: The Northeast Mycological Federation Annual Foray in Hyannis, MA

• Oct. 12-13: The Oklahoma Mushroom Festival in Oklahoma City, OK

• Oct. 18-19: The Montreal Mushroom Festival in Montreal, Québec, Canada

• Oct. 18-20: Gulf Coast Fungi Festival in Fairhope, AL

• Oct. 19,: Texas Mushroom Festival in Madisonville, TX

👀 We’re launching an events directory. Submit events via email to [email protected] or reply to this email, and keep an eye out for the list to go live.

QUESTION OF THE DAY

SPREAD THE SPORES

Is shroomer adding some magic to your inbox? We’re so glad! If you love what you’re reading, please spread the spores and forward this email to someone who you think would dig shroomer just as much as you do. Mush appreciated!