The University of Guelph (UoG) has announced that it is one of the first universities to be granted a licence by Health Canada to cultivate psychedelic mushrooms.
The team at the Ontario Agricultural College’s Department of Plant Agriculture will now be able to cultivate mushrooms that produce psilocybin and other compounds.
The researchers, Dr Max Jones and Dr Gale Bozzo, have been working for the past two years to secure the licence.
In a statement on the University’s website, Dr Jones said he was excited about the approval as it will enable a better understanding of the biology and genetics of the mushrooms, allow the study of other functional compounds they might contain and could create a reliable supply of mushrooms for pre-clinical and clinical evaluation.
Exploring compounds other than psilocybin
Most research on psychedelic mushrooms is focused around psilocybin – however, Jones and Gale are interested in finding out what other compounds the mushrooms might be producing.
Professor in the Ontario Veterinary College’s Department of Biomedical Sciences, Dr Melissa Perreault, who studies mechanisms involved in the pathology of neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders and those associated with cognitive impairments, is also interested in this area of study.
The University has confirmed that Perreault will be examining other compounds produced by psychedelic mushrooms in order to determine any signalling pathways they might affect.
In particular, compounds that may affect synaptic function, inflammatory pathways and oxidative stress.
In a statement on the UoG website, Perreault commented: “If there is any potential therapeutic value in these compounds, we would then bring them into some of the models I work with, such as those used to study specific aspects of depression or autism, to examine their therapeutic effects.”
Reinforcing the supply chain
With a rise in research investigating psilocybin, there is a need for mushrooms that are produced with consistent quality.
The University has stated that, through the cultivation of the mushrooms under the Health Canada’s dealer’s licence, Jones intends to create a consistent and reliable supply. Part of this work will entail creating a synthetic substrate – as current substrates are not always consistent.
Speaking to the University, Jones said: “There is a real need for a public supply of these mushrooms. We aim to create a supply of mushrooms to be used for preclinical and perhaps clinical trials in which the genetics and cultivation methodologies will be fully disclosed to researchers and the public.”
