Historic: Federal Agency Awards Grant For Psychedelics Research, First Time In 50 years

The National Institutes of Health awarded a nearly $4 million grant meant to fund research on psilocybin, the active ingredient in “magic mushrooms,” to researchers at Johns Hopkins University.

The event marks the first grant awarded by the federal agency to any research relating to a classic psychedelic molecule in over half a century, according to an independent study.

The funds will be used to study the therapeutic use of psilocybin therapy in nicotine addiction and smoking cessation, in collaboration with Mydecine Innovations Group MYCOF.

The Phase 2/3 study will be conducted during three years in collaboration with the University of Alabama at Birmingham and New York University, according to a NewsWise report.

“The historical importance of this grant is monumental,” said principal investigator Matthew Johnson, Ph.D., Professor in Psychedelics and Consciousness in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins.

“We knew it was only a matter of time before the NIH would fund this work because the data are so compelling and because this work has demonstrated to be safe. Psilocybin does have very real risks, but these risks are squarely mitigated in controlled settings through screening, preparation, monitoring and follow-up care,” Johnson added.

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