Tryptamines Mushroom strain differences

[scabbard]

Aside from differences in psilocybin/psilocin content between different mushroom strains, will the experience vary? E.g. if I take 4 grams of golden teachers with a 1% psilocybin content, will my experience be any different from taking 2 grams of penis envy with a 2% psilocybin content? Do mushrooms have terpenes, or something similar, in the same way that cannabis does where the experience of the high is different from strain to strain?

 

[iom]

Psilocybe cubensis mushrooms do contain alkaloids other than psilocin and psilocybin. It is unknown whether these minority alkaloids are ever present in high enough concentration to affect the quality of experience. It has not been thoroughly investigated, scientifically. Otherwise, opinions on this matter vary significantly. I personally lean toward minority alkaloids making a difference but perhaps only in some circumstances, such that most of the time different mushrooms are mostly the same.

Another question is whether psilocin and psilocybin in "equivalent dose" are qualitatively different. My understanding is that psilocybin converts to psilocin very rapidly once inside the body, such that very little psilocybin is actually present in the blood, for example, in which case I expect them to be essentially interchangeable.

 

[scabbard]

That's what I assumed but I wasn't sure. When people claim that this strain gives you more of a body high and this other strain does something entirely different, I've always been doubtful, but I figured I'd ask.

 

[Mjäll]

I prefer liberty caps to cubensis, perhaps only for the milder taste. I imagine it has less side effects but the taste thing has a big influence for me when tripping so that may be all make-believe.

 

[Ismene2]

Never noticed any difference between cubensis strains - it used to be a marketing technique back in 2007 "Golden teachers are spacey while mexican cubensis are righteously mellow". I used to buy all the different types and I could never tell any difference.

 

[Kmas]

I agree in the past that the strains of cubensis seemed to have the same basic effects and the alleged differences were was mostly marketing. Now that people have been using testing as a tool to increase potency and tryptamine content there's likely a noticeable difference between cubensis strains. I was looking at pictures of different strains the other day, they've certainly bred varieties that look incredibly trippy. Once humans begin domesticating an organism it can change very fast, especially a mushroom that has a fast turnover between generations.

For now the difference between species of mushrooms is greater than between different strains of the same species. The amount of psilocin, psilocybin, and the minor tryptamines, (they aren't like terpenes-more like CBD, THCV, etc. mushrooms contain terpenoids of their own!) along with other stuff like β-carboline alkaloids, are strain dependent and make a noticeable difference. Another difference is fresh vs dried as a great deal of psilocin (and probably other tryptamines) evaporates during drying while psilocybin does not. Liberty caps are almost all psilocybin so drying changes little while blue ringers are almost entirely psilocin so they're barely active after drying.

Here's a quote from a study I looked at that compared mice behavior from a dose of mushroom extract vs synthetic psilocybin when given to mice. They also looked at how different species of mushrooms changed the mouse behavior.

Many experienced psychedelic mushroom users believe that different Psilocybe species have distinctive and characteristic effects [8, 9]. These reports are consistent with observations regarding the effects of, Inocybe aeruginascens (high in aeruginascin) as compared to the effects of mushrooms with a high psilocybin and psilocin content. Gartz [10] observed an increased mood-enhancing effect of mushrooms high in aeruginascin as compared to those high in psilocybin, leading him to propose an “entourage effect” of psychedelic mushrooms, whereby additional components of the mushroom extract enhance the effect of psilocybin. A preclinical study compared the effects of an extract from Psilocybe argentipes to chemical psilocybin on marble-burying behavior in mice (an animal screening model used to study OCD) [11]. The results of the study showed that the psilocybin mushroom extract was more effective in reducing marble-burying than chemical psilocybin, doing so at a dose of 0.25 mg/kg psilocybin as compared to chemical psilocybin which required 1.5 mg/kg and thus supporting further exploration of an “entourage effect”. Further evidence for a psychedelic mushroom “entourage effect” was provided by Zhuk et al. [12], who showed that Psilocybe semilanceata and Pholiotina cyanopus mushroom extracts were significantly more potent on in-vivo serotonin 5-HT2A receptor behavioral assays (as demonstrated by the head-twitch response in mice) than the same dose of pure psilocin (the active metabolite of psilocybin).

And a link to the entire article.

Effect of chemically synthesized psilocybin and psychedelic mushroom extract on molecular and metabolic profiles in mouse brain - Molecular Psychiatry

Psilocybin, a naturally occurring, tryptamine alkaloid prodrug, is currently being investigated for the treatment of a range of psychiatric disorders. Preclinical reports suggest that the biological effects of psilocybin-containing mushroom extract or “full spectrum” (psychedelic) mushroom...

www.nature.com

The various tryptamines and other metabolites in mushrooms are hot in the pharmaceutical industry right now. Lots of studies, patents, and novel concoctions being tested and trialed and such. The great hope is that one of the non-psychedelic tryptamines will contain one or more of the health benefits of the active types so it can be synthesized and sold without the embarassing and naughty effect of getting the patient high.

 

[Spoonkter]

OG PF TEK and EQ for life. Once every 1 to 2 years really hits the spot.

Never tried APE only APE#6. Wasn't anything special.

P.Azure on the bucket list for sure.

 

[jwking26]

A friend of mine and myself have been tripping almost every weekend since December on various cube strains. He likes to trip out on the visuals and stare at the wall or watch videos. Lol. I like to trip while in the dark listening to music. We have both noticed that any of the penis envy strains have more of a mental load to the trip. I have also noticed strains like albino bluey vuitton have more greens and blues in the closed eye visuals where p.E. has more reds and yellows. Some strains the peak hits harder and faster while others are more of a gradual onset.