'MAGIC' MUSHROOMS MOVING BACK INTO MEDICAL LABS

Experiments Show Promise For Treating Depression, Headaches, But Risks Remain

Resting on a hospital bed beneath a tie-dyed wall hanging, Pamela
Sakuda felt a tingling sensation. Then bright colors started
shimmering in her head.

She had been depressed since being diagnosed with colon cancer two
years earlier, but as the experimental drug took hold, she felt the
sadness sweep away, leaving an overpowering sense of connection to
loved ones, then an inner calm.

"It was like an epiphany," said Sakuda, 59, recalling the 2005 drug treatment.

Sakuda, a Long Beach software developer, was under the influence of
the illegal hallucinogen psilocybin, which she took during a UCLA
study exploring the therapeutic effects of the active compound in
"magic" mushrooms.

Scientists suspect that the hallucinogen, the use of which dates back
to ancient Mexico, might have properties that could lead to improved
treatments for some psychological conditions and forms of physical pain.

Long dismissed as medically useless, the banned mushrooms, a staple
of the psychedelic 1960s, are taking a long, strange trip back to the
laboratory.

In June, the medical journal Neurology reported on more than 20 cases
in which mushroom ingestion prevented or stopped cluster headaches, a
rare neurological disorder, more reliably than prescription pharmaceuticals.

In July, researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore
reported that mushrooms could impart a lasting sense of spirituality
and connection, a finding that scientists said could lead to
treatments for patients suffering from mental anguish or addiction.

The research has been driven in part by the success of mood-altering
pharmaceuticals, such as the antidepressant Prozac, which work on the
same brain chemicals and pathways.

Nothing scientists have learned indicates that recreational use of
mushrooms is safe. The psychological effects remain unpredictable.
Deaths have been linked to mushroom intoxication.

Even under the highly controlled conditions of a clinical trial, some
patients have had terrifying experiences marked by anxiety and
paranoia. Two people in the Johns Hopkins study likened the
experience to being in a war.

The drug "takes your thoughts through a prism and turns them around,"
Sakuda said.

Her drug trip left her with a lasting sense of peace, a serenity she
hadn't felt since her diagnosis.

"It was like rebooting a computer," she said.

Sakuda died Nov. 10. Her husband, Norbert Litzinger, said the drug
made a difference.

"There was a rebirth around her, and it didn't stop," he said.

Forty years ago, the study of hallucinogens in therapy was a
mainstream endeavor. The Swiss drug company Sandoz provided
pharmaceutical-grade tablets of psilocybin, and various researchers
explored its use as a treatment for depression and other
psychological problems.

Used for centuries during spiritual ceremonies by the Mazatec Indians
in southern Mexico, mushrooms helped fuel the counterculture of the
1960s. The mushrooms still figure in religious rituals in Mexico and
can be found growing wild in many parts of the world.

In 1970, Congress made it illegal to posses the hallucinogens,
including psilocybin and LSD, by classifying them as Schedule I,
meaning they had no legitimate medical use.

"All research was shut down," said UCLA psychiatrist Dr. Charles Grob.

In the late 1990s, regulators began approving experiments again,
sparked by discoveries in neuroscience that illuminated the
biochemical basis of mood and consciousness. The advances focused on
the complex roles of the brain chemical serotonin, a neurotransmitter
that passes signals between cells throughout the brain.

In some instances, a flow of serotonin can alter moods, such as
depression, euphoria, anxiety and aggression. The chemical is also
thought to be involved with nausea, body temperature and appetite control.

Many hallucinogens, including psilocybin, mimic the action of
serotonin on various receptors throughout the brain. When the drugs
circulate in the brain, they can amplify, distort and cross signals.
Sounds have colors, and motions become out-of-body experiences.

The drugs can trigger emotionally charged states and potentially
dangerous behaviors. Even the most optimistic psychedelic researchers
acknowledge that, at best, psilocybin will become a special-purpose
drug administered under tight supervision because reactions vary from
person to person and from one occasion to the next.