A public health scientist investigates Amanita muscaria gummies sold in smoke shops as 'magic mushrooms,' discovering they contain muscimol, a compound that works differently from psilocybin by acting on GABA-A receptors to inhibit rather than stimulate brain activity, raising safety and legal questions.
A startup is developing a psychedelic-like drug to treat Parkinson's symptoms. The FDA faces complications in its hiring expansion. The article also mentions research on mice with human-like brain characteristics.