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Presence of phenylethylamine in hallucinogenic Psilocybe mushroom: possible role in adverse reaction

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joedirt

joedirt

Not I
OG Pioneer
First off sorry for the double post, but I really think this information needs it's own thread as well.

I have recently come across a strain of cubensis (Burma) that has caused severe gastric upset in a couple of people...even as a tea. Recently I also had a very severe reaction to these shrooms myself in the form of massive shivering and panic. I simply don't panic from psychedelic compounds alone...not at the sort of dose I'd normally taken. I've started a thread about that experience which can be read here.


Since that event I've been trying to figure out what was happened and this lead me to the analytical toxicology paper.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Presence of phenylethylamine in hallucinogenic Psilocybe mushroom: possible role in adverse reactions - PubMed

The use of mushrooms containing the hallucinogenic substance psilocybin for intentional intoxication is relatively common. Occasionally, this results in adverse reactions with typical tachycardia that is not evidently caused by psilocybin. This study demonstrates the presence of phenylethylamine...
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov


I just realized that this information has been seen on erowid so others are aware of it as well. I'd really like to get a full analysis of alkaloid concentrations for different mushroom species growing on different media in different conditions. Whoever grow the last shrooms we came across did something different I think. They were certainly active, but there was something else making the trip very very uncomfortable. <see first link for details>
 
This is really interesting. Some mushrooms also contain tryptophan, a precursor to seretonin, which unlike seretonin itself (also found in mushrooms) can cross the blood brain barrier, and I think this may also modulate the experience, for good or ill.

I have certainly encountered mushrooms that were very weird and sometimes uncomfortable on a physical level, resulting in tachychardia and other unpleasant symptoms that were quite unusual, and which I couldn't explain away via the old "set and setting" theory, as both of these were nominal during said experiences, I'm not one who really freaks out.

Interestingly, this could explain why people sometimes experience more worrying physical symptoms when combining mushrooms with MAOI's such as Syrian Rue and caapi. The MAOI activity of these plants will also increase absorption of the phenylethylamine, and may increase the chances of an unpleasant experience.
 
My favorite mushrooms so far are psilocybe cyanescenes..though I do love cubensis because both them and cyans have changed my life..

In this last year however, most of my work has been with ayahuasca and changa, always with mimosa as admixture..even ayahuasca there is less body load and sick feelings for me than there is with cubes..I have started to notice how clear and crisp mimosa visons and body effects are compared to cubensis..

Because of this I have only taken mushrooms about 7 or 8 times in the last year..I took them every week for about 4 weeks in the summer and once more at the end of summer..

With cyanescenes I remember them being very clear when I would take them, insanely visual and alot like DMT..wth cyans I have had DMT like breakthroughs with just a few grams..I finally have some access to them now through someone that picks them and have been going out looking for them myself as well so hopefully I will get some for this winter..I have almost 2 ounces of cubes here in my freezer as well so I can test them side by side and comppare both to DMT and aya..
 
From what I know of phenylethylamines, they're usually caused by the fermentation or otherwise breaking down of foods via microbes.

Going off of this, and the one time I witnessed tachycardia from mushrooms, I would say they were molding.

If the mushrooms were improperly dried (where you can still feel spongyness) then about a week is as long as it takes, and I bet you it doesn't take much. Maybe as little as one or two mushies starting to go bad.

Best guess is they're not being dried enough.
 
WOW. this is pretty amazing IMO.

So judging by the paper provided above (just looking at the abstract), it seems they also found it present, while in small quantaties, of phenylethylamine in liberty caps. So I am assuming it occurs in all psilocybin mushrooms at different concentrations?

TheReadyAwakening said:
From what I know of phenylethylamines, they're usually caused by the fermentation or otherwise breaking down of foods via microbes
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So would this work with say regular button mushrooms fermenting? :? :?: Or would this only occur in psilocybin mushrooms?
 
ElusiveMind said:
So would this work with say regular button mushrooms fermenting? :? :?: Or would this only occur in psilocybin mushrooms?
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I would assume so. However, the psilocybin most likely has an impact. I can see two possibilities.

1. The psilocybin in the mushrooms are chemically affected by the molds or vice versa.

or

2. Psilocybin being active in the body affects the breakdown of the molds.

This is assuming the phenylethylamines are resulting from the molds, and are not being produced within the mushrooms.
 
Sometimes even phen-containing fresh cacti get molds on them. So a food dehydrator is a good way to get fresh cactus slices turned into a dry powder in 24 hours or even less (depending on the thickness of the sliced stars). So would a food dehydrator be a good way to avoid a mold problem with mushrooms, too?
 
I ate some moldy cyans once. They were so delicious!!!! I don't normally like the taste but oh geez oh man. Anyhow, later friend told me that some molds are toxic and I should be careful. ps the trip was a very nice one.
 
pau said:
So would a food dehydrator be a good way to avoid a mold problem with mushrooms, too?
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Well fully drying the mushrooms does help prevent mold, but also storage has a key roll in it too. If your dry mushrooms become moist after drying, there's a good chance they will eventually go moldy. So proper drying and storage go hand-in-hand when preventing mold
 
Yes.
Mine went moldy because they seemed dry and I put them into a plastic bag but they were ever so slightly moist and molded. Now I store the dry ones in paper to allow adequate ventilation.
 
pau said:
So would a food dehydrator be a good way to avoid a mold problem with mushrooms, too?
Click to expand...

I just started drying my mushies in a dehydrator (one of the round multi-racked ones, not super nice or anything) and it works AWESOME! Just throw em' in there on the bottom rack, on the lowest setting (herbs & spices, about 95 degrees), come back a few hours later and they're good to go. The fatties usually take a few hours more, but not too much longer.

I like it because you don't have to risk over-heating at all! I've heard of qwik-dries in the oven (or any other overly hot device) messing with the psilocybin content, though not sure how reliable that is.
 
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