🫁 Lung Cancer Breakthrough, PCOS Mushroom Chewables, and Fast Psilocybin Relief

IN TODAY’S EDITION

• 🫁 | Lung cancer support

• 🌸 | PCOS support chewable

• 🌈 | Fast antidepressant effects

Hi Shroomers. This newsletter turned 2 years old on July 20. I sent the first issue to a few dozen subscribers. This is Edition #130 and there are 24,000+ of you reading along each week, and that still blows my mind. Whether you’ve been here since the start or just joined, thank you.

If you learned something new today or thought of someone while reading, pass it along! That simple share helps keep independent science journalism alive.

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Chemo drug cleanup 💊 Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) broke down over 90% of methotrexate, a toxic chemotherapy drug, in just five days. The fungi used powerful enzymes like laccase to transform the pollutant into less harmful compounds.

Food upgrade 🧬 Scientists engineered cordyceps (Cordyceps militaris) to safely produce supplements and edible biotech products without relying on antibiotic resistance genes. By deleting a gene required for uracil production (pyrG), they created food-safe fungal strains that can be genetically modified using nutrient markers instead, achieving up to 810 successful transformations per 100,000 spores. This breakthrough boosts the mushroom’s potential as a clean platform for future health ingredients.

Split gill power 🌿 The split gill mushroom (Schizophyllum commune) offers antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anticancer benefits, thanks to compounds like polysaccharides, flavonoids, and ergosterol. Over the past decade, it's shown promise for protecting against toxins, supporting immune health, and managing chronic diseases.

Forest fungi fight cancer 🌲 Endophytic fungi living inside forest plants produced powerful compounds that killed cancer cells, including lung, breast, and colon types, with up to 94% cytotoxicity. Extracts from these wild fungi also showed strong antioxidant and antimicrobial effects, pointing to promising new leads for anticancer drug development sourced directly from nature.

β-glucan benefits 🍄 Mushroom-based beta glucans (β-glucans) help regulate blood sugar, reduce inflammation, and support healthy weight, making them powerful allies in managing diabetes and obesity. This review also explores their emerging use in nanomedicine for targeted drug delivery and immune modulation, showing just how far these fungal fibers can go in modern health.

PCOS support chewable 🌸 A new supplement made with white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) shows potential to ease symptoms of PCOS through anti-inflammatory and hormone-balancing effects. Designed as a chewable, it’s a food-based option for daily hormonal support.

This edition’s brain boost 🧠 Golden oyster mushroom (Pleurotus citrinopileatus) extract protected neurons from oxidative stress and reduced memory loss in mice by acting as a natural acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor. After just 28 days of supplementation, treated mice showed up to 60% improvement in memory performance, highlighting this mushroom’s strong potential for Alzheimer’s support.

Immune upgrade 🛡️ A fermented extract made from almond mushroom (Agaricus subrufescens) and rye boosted immune function by increasing key immune signals: TNF-α and IL-6—by 3 to 4 times in lab tests. These are proteins your body uses to coordinate immune responses and inflammation. The arabinoxylan-rich extract also fed beneficial gut bacteria, showing promise as a dual-action prebiotic and immune-enhancing supplement.

Lung cancer support 🫁 Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) and turkey tail (Trametes versicolor) extracts boosted the effectiveness of EGFR-targeted lung cancer drugs in lab and animal studies. These mushrooms helped reduce tumor resistance and improved drug uptake by regulating EGFR pathways. Together, they may enhance conventional lung cancer treatment by making medications more effective and lowering side effects.

PSILOCYBIN & LEGISLATION

Prodrug innovation 💊 Scientists developed new psilocin-based ACOM prodrugs that are more chemically stable and customizable for different delivery routes. These next-gen compounds allow for fine-tuned activation in the body—ranging from ultra-fast (under 1 minute) to slow release (over 4 hours)—which could lead to more precise, consistent psychedelic-assisted therapy. While sublingual options remain ineffective due to saliva breakdown, oral, transdermal, and IV routes hold real promise for the future of psychedelic medicine.

Setting standards 🛋️ An international panel of 89 experts across 17 countries created the first consensus guidelines for reporting “set and setting” in psychedelic clinical trials. These new ReSPCT standards cover 30 key variables, including lighting, music, room design, therapist training, and session flow, to improve consistency, safety, and scientific reproducibility. By formalizing how non-drug factors are documented, the guidelines aim to support more ethical, transparent, and effective psychedelic-assisted therapy worldwide.

Strength revealed 🍄 A validated testing method now accurately measures how much psilocybin and psilocin are in psychedelic mushrooms. Using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), it detects potency variations due to species, drying, and storage, which is key for ensuring safe, consistent dosing in both research and personal use.

Smoker surveys 🚬 People trying to quit smoking showed strong interest in psilocybin-assisted therapy, viewing it as a potentially powerful tool, especially when paired with trained support. While concerns about emotional intensity and safety were raised, many saw psilocybin as offering a deeper, more meaningful approach than traditional treatments. The study highlights growing public openness to using psychedelics to support major life changes.

Fast antidepressant effects 🌈 Psilocybin rapidly eases depression by activating serotonin 5-HT₂A receptors and triggering neuroplasticity, helping the brain form new connections. Unlike traditional antidepressants that can take weeks, psilocybin showed fast improvements in treatment-resistant depression. It also affected glutamate pathways and reduced inflammation, offering a multifaceted approach to mood regulation.

Trip risks ⚠️ Reports of adverse events from psychedelic mushrooms have more than doubled since 2020, with 1,119 cases logged in 2024 alone—up from 486 in 2020. Young men aged 17–29 made up over half of all reports, and were 2.5 times more likely than women to experience complications. The most common symptoms? Hallucinations (27.4%), agitation (23%), rapid heart rate (16.3%), and vomiting (15.6%). These findings, based on poison center data, mimic the popularity of psilocybin in the last five years, suggesting a need for more common public education on this ancient medicine.

Legal shifts, real effects ⚖️ New research shows psilocybin use rose after legalization and decriminalization efforts, especially in Oregon, while use of LSD and MDMA declined. This “substitution effect” suggests people may be choosing psilocybin over “riskier” substances. Researchers analyzed data from the Monitoring the Future project and found the policy reforms likely contributed to a shift toward mushrooms, which have a lower risk profile and growing therapeutic reputation.

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

Materials tested 🧪 This study compared mycelium grown from 11 different mushroom-forming fungi to see which produce the strongest and most sustainable materials. Three standout species were split gill, (Schizophyllum commune), lacquered bracket (Ganoderma resinaceum), and gilled polypore (Trametes betulina). They produced the most biomass, but when tested, all three had similar strength, stretch, and water resistance properties. That means the species itself may matter less than the cultivation method, important insight for making fungi-based leather, textiles, or packaging at scale.

Farm waste 🌾 Researchers found that reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) can be successfully cultivated on a wide range of agricultural and wood-based waste, like oak sawdust, hazelnut husks, wheat straw, and even spent coffee grounds. Oak wood mixed with wheat bran produced the highest yield (46 g/kg), while corn husk and wheat straw yielded the least. Chemical analysis showed that reishi actively breaks down complex fibers in the substrate, making this a promising, low-cost method for sustainable cultivation.

Pollutant-busting fungi 🧪 Fringed sawgill (Lentinus berteroi), a rare mushroom, produces a powerful laccase enzyme that can break down harmful pollutants like β-estradiol (82% reduction), diclofenac (70%), and bisphenol-A (30%). While it couldn’t degrade ibuprofen, the enzyme remained 80% active for over two days.

Eating oily soil 🛢️ Researchers isolated fungi from petroleum-contaminated soil and discovered that several strains, especially blue-green mold (Penicillium chrysogenum), produce powerful lipase enzymes that can break down oils and fats. By optimizing conditions like temperature, pH, and nutrient levels, lipase production increased 8.5-fold.

Invasive golden oysters 📛 The golden oyster mushroom (Pleurotus citrinopileatus), originally cultivated in Asia, has escaped into North American forests and is now found in 25 U.S. states and one Canadian province. This fast-spreading, commercially sold species is disrupting native fungal ecosystems: trees colonized by golden oysters show reduced fungal diversity and altered microbial communities. Researchers warn that climate change could accelerate its spread, making golden oysters a pressing ecological threat. We’ve also written about this before in-depth.

Protecting lettuce 🥬 When arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi were added to zinc-contaminated soil, lettuce plants grew better and absorbed more zinc into their edible leaves without suffering from metal toxicity. This dual effect means these fungi could help improve crop nutrition while remediating polluted soil, especially in urban and industrial settings.

FORAGED FINDS

1. Mycology Men is a small business where you can buy mushroom liquid cultures and other mycology growing supplies. Buy mushroom liquid cultures.

2. The Telluride Institute is still offering all Shroomers 10% off a pass using code SHROOMERGIVEAWAY10 or purchasing through this link.

3. Microdosing Magic is a new eBook by Soma Phoenix of PsillyGirls that blends modern science with ancient plant wisdom. Learn how to stack mushrooms with herbal allies to reduce stress, sharpen focus, and create a more intentional daily practice.

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