□ tadpole

　　"Red umbrellas, white poles, lie on the board together after eating." After the so-called "song of the emergency room" was sung, the poisonous mushroom was once "victimized by the wind."

But you know what, poisonous mushrooms aren't all bad either.

Recently there was exciting news that a hallucinogenic mushroom could solve the problem of depression.

How is this going?

　　Eating 'poisonous mushrooms' may treat depression

　　"Fried", "cooked", "cooked on the way to the hospital".

To eat poisonous mushrooms, there must be these three "cooked".

Every year, many people are sent to the emergency room because of accidentally ingesting poisonous mushrooms, and their lives are on the line.

　　But recently, scientists said they found the unlock code for depression treatment from hallucinogenic mushrooms.

An article published in the professional journal "Science" stated that Chinese scientists have developed a new type of antidepressant molecule without hallucinogenic effects, psilocybin, based on the mechanism of action of hallucinogens and receptors, which is derived from poisonous mushrooms. Natural hallucinogens extracted from.

Several studies have confirmed its potential to treat depression, and in 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration designated it as a breakthrough therapy for major depressive disorder and drug-resistant depression.

However, there have been difficulties in how to separate the antidepressant effects from the hallucinogenic effects.

　　The researchers used mice to do experiments and found that a molecule called IHCH-7086 could significantly improve depressive behavior in mice without showing hallucinogenic effects.

This study not only revealed the molecular mechanism of hallucinations, but also found a new class of molecules that are expected to treat depression, providing a new idea for the development of fast-acting and long-acting antidepressant drugs.

　　In fact, in the field of cutting-edge medicine, scientists have been studying the possibility of treating chronic depression with psilocybin.

　　There are also clinical studies showing that psilocybin, extracted from hallucinogenic mushrooms, can greatly improve symptoms in people with depression within a day, and the effects can last for more than three months.

　　In 2017, researchers at Imperial College London, UK, administered psilocybin to 19 depressed patients.

All volunteers observed a reduction in depressive symptoms after one week, with "47% of patients experiencing significant relief after 5 weeks".

　　In addition, psilocybin also has the functions of assisting smoking cessation and alleviating the pain of cancer patients.

　　'Sacred mushrooms' have been eaten for years

　　Psilocybin, also known as the "sacred mushroom".

It has been used for hundreds of years in certain religious ceremonies of the indigenous people of Mexico.

Since the 1970s, many young people in the United States, Canada, Britain, Germany and other countries also like to eat mushrooms containing such toxins for recreation.

　　But long-term or excessive use of these substances can cause neurotoxicity, so these mushrooms are also listed as controlled substances in the United States.

　　Psilocybin is a psychoactive ingredient in "psychedelic mushrooms", which is a Class I controlled drug in my country.

This means that it does not currently have any legal medical use, and there is a high risk of abuse.

Psilocybin is obviously not equivalent to a drug.

Researchers still need to conduct a lot of experimental verification before making it a good medicine for the benefit of patients as soon as possible.

　　At present, it belongs to a class of controlled drugs in almost all countries and regions in the world.

This means that it does not yet have any legitimate medical use and carries a high risk of abuse: random attempts at hallucinogens can come with unbearable costs, including the end of life.

　　Eating 'poisonous mushrooms' is dangerous

　　The vicious incident that occurred after the consumption of hallucinogenic mushrooms was in the Netherlands in 2007.

A 17-year-old French girl came to Amsterdam for tourism, bought "magic mushrooms" at a convenience store and ran to the top of the Nemo Building. After eating it, she had hallucinations and could not control herself, so she fell from a height.

Afterwards, the Dutch government issued relevant policies in response to this incident, and imposed legal and regulatory restrictions on the sale and consumption of hallucinogenic mushrooms.

　　Although the psilocybin in hallucinogenic mushrooms has significant effects on the treatment of depression, for us ordinary people, the risk of eating poisonous mushrooms is huge.

　　Most common adverse reactions are extreme anxiety or short-term psychosis, or experiencing feelings of hopelessness, confusion, paranoia, anxiety, panic; difficulty adjusting to reality may occur after taking psilocybin for several days; some people may look at them The ways of the world undergo continual, harrowing changes that can last from weeks to years.

　　At the same time, follow-up studies by medical institutions have shown that psilocybin is not addictive, and there will be no physical reaction after stopping.

　　Finally, it is worth reminding everyone that in order to prevent eating hallucinogenic mushrooms from causing poisoning or breaking the law, or even threatening one's own life, the most fundamental way is not to take the initiative to eat them.

In case of accidental ingestion, the best way is to seek professional medical assistance as soon as possible, so as not to delay the disease.

　　In short, don't think about how to "test the poison by yourself"!

　　(Source tadpole stave)