[Narcotic mushrooms with LSD?]

Area of Science:

• Forensic Chemistry
• Mycology
• Pharmacology

Background:

• East-Asian mushrooms recently appeared on the German drug market.
• These mushrooms were misrepresented as containing psilocybin, a psychoactive compound found in sacred hallucinogenic varieties.
• The actual psychoactive substance identified was lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD).

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and propose a reliable method for identifying psilocybin in mushroom samples.
• To confirm the presence of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in mislabeled mushroom products.
• To establish analytical techniques for differentiating between psilocybin and LSD in forensic investigations.

Main Methods:

• Proposed the TAS method for the safe and accurate identification of psilocybin.
• Employed tartaric acid extraction followed by Thin-Layer Chromatography (TLC) for lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) identification.
• Utilized a modified van Urk reaction combined with retardation factor (hRf) values for the detection of psilocybin, psilocine, and LSD.

Main Results:

• Successfully identified lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in the tested East-Asian mushrooms.
• The proposed TAS method facilitates the safe identification of psilocybin.
• The modified van Urk reaction with hRf values proved effective for detecting psilocybin, psilocine, and LSD in the samples.

Conclusions:

• East-Asian mushrooms recently appearing on the German drug scene were found to be adulterated with LSD, not psilocybin as claimed.
• The TAS method is proposed as a reliable technique for psilocybin identification in mushrooms.
• Combined analytical methods, including TLC and modified van Urk reactions, are suitable for the forensic detection of psilocybin, psilocine, and LSD in mushroom samples.