June 22, 2023 by Alex Brewer, PharmD, MBA
TL;DR
- Researchers discovered an active compound in Lion’s mane mushrooms responsible for nerve growth and improving memory.
- The study used cultured (picture: petri dish) brain cells, so we don’t know how or to what extent this process plays out in a “real” brain (like yours!).
- This discovery shows the potential to develop medications which actively promote brain nerve growth while avoiding hallucinations, “tripping”, and other classic psychedelic effects (and why that’s important, for some people).
Jumping Into the Lion’s Den
Researchers at University of Queensland (AU) discovered an active compound in Lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus) responsible for nerve growth and improving memory. Lion’s mane? I know, not a psychedelic. Stick with me, it’s worth it. This could have important implications for drug development, a key theme to this week’s issue.
As usual, there’s a key limitation – this was a pre-clinical study conducted in brain culture cells. We’ll discuss what that means, and how to temper expectations without killing the conversation.
Lion’s Mane?
Hericium erinaceus – or, as we more commonly know it, Lion’s Mane – is an edible tooth fungus native to Asia, Europe, and North America. It’s been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries and has a plethora of purported benefits.
A few examples include:
- May help protect against memory loss and dementia symptoms
- May help lower inflammation, oxidative stress, and the risk for heart disease
- May help relieve mild symptoms of depression or anxiety
- May help protect against digestive ulcers
- May boost the immune system
Products featuring Lion’s Mane exploded in popularity through the 2010s, and don’t seem to be going away anytime soon.
“Neat. But it’s not a psychedelic. Why are we talking about it?” Hold your horses lions.
You’re right. Lion’s Mane is not a psychedelic. And this is a newsletter about psychedelics. I promise this is going somewhere worthwhile.
The Actual Study
In this study, researchers at University of Queensland (AU) isolated different compounds found in Lion’s Mane and placed them in brain cell cultures. This is an extremely common way to test the effects of potential medications and treatments on the human brain. Essentially, researchers place the compounds in the petri dish (which contains cultured brain cells, grown from samples taken during neurosurgeries) and observe what takes place.
When isolated Lion’s Mane compounds were placed in brain cell culture, researchers noted that the compounds promoted connections between neurons. Neurons, or nerve cells, are the fundamental cells of your brain and spinal cord (your central nervous system). They allow your brain to send information, including messages and instructions, quickly throughout your body.
And, the researchers also found that active compounds extracted from Lion’s Mane increased the size of growth cones. Growth cones help your brain cells sense their environment, and create new connections with other neurons.
Implications
“You still haven’t told me why we’re talking about Lion’s Mane and not psilocybin or ayahuasca.”
I’m long-winded, get used to it. Anyway..
THIS STUDY IS IMPORTANT AND RELEVANT TO PSYCHEDELICS because it shows how we can isolate and study individual compounds found within a mushroom species. We use this information to determine which components cause certain effects.
Identifying compounds responsible for “positive” outcomes allows us to create new medications with the same positive effects, while avoiding “classic” psychoactive effects (ex: tripping, hallucinations, etc.) Who could this help? Let’s look at one example. Some people experience psychosis or suicidal ideations after using classic psychedelics. This research helps us create compounds that could offer treatment to people who cannot tolerate “tripping” but would still benefit from therapeutic psychedelic use.
In fact, the next article hits on this very topic!
As usual, we do need to pump the brakes a bit. This study was carried out in cultured brain cells. The field of drug development is littered with carcasses of failed molecules that showed immense potential in cell cultures, but failed miserably in treating actual living breathing human beings. (The whole “VITAMIN C CAN TREAT CANCER IT’S A CONSPIRACY BY BIG PHARMA” thing comes from weaponizing pre-clinical and in-vitro research, such as this study.) It’s important to remember that the human body, particularly the human brain, is an immensely complex network of trillions of molecules and cells interacting with each other at all times. The effects witnessed in a petri dish are not always predictive of what will actually happen when a person ingests a compound.
Conclusion
Research on Lion’s mane mushrooms led to the discovery of an active compound that appears to cause nerve growth and may improve memory. This is exciting and shows the potential to develop medications which actively promote growth of nerve cells in the brain, without the potential for hallucinations, psychosis, or other rare but serious possible side effects caused by psychedelics. It’s important to temper expectations for now, though, since the study was carried out in brain cell cultures and not actual people. We’ll need to see whether the isolated compounds can show positive effects when used in people.