Psilocybin - could "magic mushrooms" be the key to treating depression and other mental illness?

Professor David Nutt explains how psilocybin - a compound found in some mushrooms - could be used by doctors to help patients with treatment-resistant depression. He explains how psilocybin works in the brain, and how more research is needed to see if it could help some people living with mental health conditions.

Further reading on psilocybin and other psychedelics:

Daniel Hoyer (2023). 'Psychedelics and mental health treatments: past, present and future', Pharmacology Matters: https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...

Jade Pullen (2023). 'A trip to West Africa: Gabon’s indigenous psychedelic', Pharmacology Matters: https://www.bps.ac.uk/publishing/phar...

Ryan J. Rakoczy et al. (2024). ‘Pharmacological and behavioural effects of tryptamines present in psilocybin-containing mushrooms’, British Journal of Pharmacology: https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...

Balázs Szigeti et al. (2023). 'Bayesian analysis of real-world data as evidence for drug approval: Remembering Sir Michael Rawlins', British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology: https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...

M. F. SUGRUE (1969). 'A study of the role of noradrenaline in behavioural changes produced in the rat by psychotomimetic drugs', British Journal of Pharmacology: https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...

Jeremy Weleff et al. (2024). 'From taboo to treatment: The emergence of psychedelics in the management of pain and opioid use disorder', British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology: https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...

Benjamin Stewart et al. (2020). 'Psychedelic-assisted therapy for functional neurological disorders: A theoretical framework and review of prior reports', Pharmacolog Research & Perspectives: https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...

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For more information on the current research into psilocybin, you can read browse papers tagged with "psilocybin" in the British Journal of Pharmacology, British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, and Pharmacology Research & Pespectives: https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.c...

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