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Introduction: The fly agaric mushroom (Amanita muscaria) has been used for centuries to treat various ailments, particularly those affecting the nervous system. With the growing interest in mushrooms as potential therapies for mental health, researchers have decided to take a closer look at how extracts from this mushroom affect brain cells, specifically microglia.

What are microglia? Microglia are immune cells located in the brain. They monitor the brain environment and respond to threats, such as infections or injuries. In inflammatory states, they can play both protective and harmful roles, making them key targets in neuroinflammation research.

Research on fly agaric extract (AME-1): Scientists studied the effects of fly agaric extract (AME-1) on human microglia (HMC3). They evaluated how AME-1 impacts the expression of various surface receptors and the production of cytokines (proteins involved in inflammatory responses).

Key Findings:

• Receptor Expression: AME-1 increased the number of CD86, CXCR4, CD45, CD125, and TLR4 receptors on the surface of HMC3 microglia. These receptors are essential for recognizing and responding to inflammatory signals.
• Cytokine Production: HMC3 microglia, stimulated with LPS (lipopolysaccharide), TNF (tumor necrosis factor), and poly(I) (a synthetic double-stranded RNA analog), produced cytokines IL-8 and IL-6. AME-1 enhanced IL-8 production, especially in combination with poly(I).
• Gene Expression Changes: AME-1 altered mRNA levels of TLR3 receptors but did not significantly affect RIG-I and MDA5 proteins, which are critical for virus recognition in cells.
• Metabolomic Analysis: AME-1 extract contained various metabolites, including trehalose, known as an autophagy inducer (a cell-cleaning process). Similar to AME-1, trehalose increased IL-8 production in response to poly(I), suggesting it may play a key role in the extract’s action.

Conclusions: The study suggests that fly agaric extracts may influence microglial inflammatory responses, potentially due to the presence of trehalose. AME-1 can activate microglia to produce significant cytokine levels and alter surface receptor expression, which could have potential applications in brain inflammation therapy.

Why is this important? Better understanding how natural extracts impact brain cells could lead to new therapies for various neurological disorders, including neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases.

Sources:

PubMed Central – PMC10130647

This article presents research findings that may be significant for future mental health therapies and neurological disease treatment, highlighting the potential of natural substances such as fly agaric extract.czerwonego.