Magic mushroom compound scrambles brain waves in healthy volunteers
NCT ID NCT05301608
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 24, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study gives healthy adults a single dose of psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) or a placebo, then uses brain scans and thinking tasks to measure changes in thoughts and brain activity. The goal is to understand how the drug works, not to treat any disease. About 30 volunteers aged 18 to 75 will participate.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1/2
Runs two stages together: safety and dose first, then whether the treatment works.
- Participants
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About 30 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Mar 2022
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 75 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * 18 to 75 years old * Have given written informed consent * Have at least a high-school level of education or equivalent (e.g. GED) and be fluent in English * Be healthy and psychologically stable as determined by screening for medical and psychiatric problems via a personal interview, a medical questionnaire, a physical examination, an electrocardiogram (ECG), and routine medical blood and urinalysis laboratory tests * Agree to consume approximately the same amount of caffeine-containing beverage (e.g. coffee, tea) that he/she consumes on a usual morning, before arriving at the research unit on the morning of the drug session day. If the participant does not routinely consume caffeinated beverages, he/she must agree not to do so on the session day. * Agree to refrain from using any psychoactive drugs, including alcoholic beverages and nicotine, within 24 hours of each drug administration. The exception is caffeine. * Agree not to take any "as-needed" medications on the mornings of drug sessions * Agree not to take sildenafil (Viagra®), tadalafil, or similar medications within 72 hours of each drug administration. * Agree that for one week before each drug session, he/she will refrain from taking any nonprescription medication, nutritional supplement, or herbal supplement except when approved by the study investigators. Exceptions will be evaluated by the study investigators and will include acetaminophen, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and common doses of vitamins and minerals. * Have used a psychedelic drug (e.g. lysergic acid diethylamide(LSD)/acid, psilocybin mushrooms, ayahuasca) at least five times in their lifetime. * Proof of COVID-19 vaccination Exclusion Criteria: * Women who are pregnant (as indicated by a positive urine pregnancy test assessed at intake and before each drug session) or nursing; women who are of child-bearing potential and sexually active who are not practicing an effective means of birth control. * Cardiovascular conditions: coronary artery disease, stroke, angina, uncontrolled hypertension, a clinically significant ECG abnormality (e.g. atrial fibrilation), artificial heart valve, or heart attack in the past year * Epilepsy with history of seizures * Insulin-dependent diabetes; if taking oral hypoglycemic agent, then no history of hypoglycemia * Currently taking psychoactive prescription medication on a regular (e.g. daily) basis * Currently taking on a regular (e.g. daily) basis any medications having a primary centrally-acting serotonergic effect, including mono-amine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). For individuals who have intermittent or "as needed" use of such medications, psilocybin sessions will not be conducted until at least five half-lives of the agent have elapsed after the last dose. * More than 20% outside the upper or lower range of ideal body weight according to Metropolitan Life height and weight table * Current or past history of meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, version 5 (DSM-5) criteria for schizophrenia spectrum or other psychotic disorders (except substance/medication-induced or due to another medical condition) * Current or past history within the last five years of meeting DSM-5 criteria for a moderate or severe alcohol or drug use disorder (excluding caffeine and nicotine) * Have a first or second-degree relative with bipolar I disorder, schizophrenia spectrum, or other psychotic disorders (except substance/medication-induced or due to another medical condition) * Has a psychiatric condition judged to be incompatible with establishment of rapport or safe exposure to psilocybin * Has history of migraine, tension, or other recurring headaches. * Head trauma, traumatic brain injury, or concussion with loss of consciousness for \>2 minutes * Contraindications for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (e.g. claustrophobia incompatible with MRI scanning, medical device or implant incompatible with MRI, prior history as a metal worker and/or certain metallic objects in the body) * Left-handedness (assessed by the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory)
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research
RECRUITINGBaltimore, Maryland, 21224, United States
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