Lanmaoa asiatica

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Lanmaoa asiatica
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Boletales
Family: Boletaceae
Genus: Lanmaoa
Species:
L. asiatica
Binomial name
Lanmaoa asiatica
G.Wu & Zhu L.Yang (2015)

Lanmaoa asiatica is a species of bolete mushroom of the family Boletaceae. It is reddish in color [1] and an ectomycorrhizal symbiote of the Yunnan Pine, Pinus yunnanensis . It is a type of hallucinogenic bolete mushroom and is notable for causing lilliputian hallucinations (little people hallucinations) when eaten raw. [2] [3] The effects of Lanmaoa asiatica in animals are being studied by Colin Domnauer and Bryn Dentinger and there is work towards identifying its active constituents as of late 2025. [2] [3]

Contents

Range

The mushroom is found in Yunnan (southwestern China) and [4] the northern Cordillera (Philippines), where it is known as Jianshouqing (Chinese :见手青; pinyin :Jiànshǒuqīng; lit.'see-hand-blue', as the flesh turns blue when exposed to air) [a] and Sedesdem respectively. [2]

Toxicity

It is believed that the mushroom is less hallucinogenic when cooked thoroughly. [2] [3] Yunnanese restaurants have developed a complete system of cooking and serving standards (which includes a ban on consuming alcoholic drinks with the mushroom) to minimize poisoning, with some establishments going further to make sure to always leave a sample of the mushrooms for analysis. The local government also sends short messages during mushroom season to warn about the potential of poisonings. [5] Nevertheless, poisonings remain common and the treatment thereof has subsequently become a specialty of local hospitals. [6]

Chemical and genomic analyses have shown that the Lanmaoa asiatica does not contain any known psychoactive compounds such as psilocybin or muscimol. It is likely that there remains an unknown hallucinogenic compound yet to be discovered in this species. [2] [3] [7] Chemical analysis of Lanmaoa asiatica has identified numerous compounds and their pharmacological activity has been studied, but as yet none of them have been linked to the reported psychoactive effects. [8] [9] [10] [11]

There are reports of Lilliputian hallucinations across several countries that remain unexplained. [2] [3] In one Yunnan hospital doctors treat hundreds of such cases a year that manifest visions of tiny elves going under doors, climbing the furniture, and scaling walls. [12] It is considered a choice wild edible [1] because of its umami flavor, which is highly regarded in Asia. [13] "At a mushroom hot pot restaurant there, the server set a timer for 15 minutes and warned us, 'Don't eat it until the timer goes off or you might see little people,'" says Colin Domnauer, a University of Utah doctoral candidate who studies L. asiatica. [14]

In 2023, Lanmaoa asiatica received international media attention after U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen was reported to have eaten a dish that contained it during an official visit to China. Yellen stated that the dish had been thoroughly cooked, and she experienced no ill effects (hallucinations). [15]

See also

Note

  1. ↑ Jiànshǒuqīng is a name broadly applied to boletes that turn blue on exposure to air. The academic name for this mushroom in Chinese is 兰茂牛肝菌 "Lan Mao's bolete", after Mr. Lan Mao, the namesake of the genus Lanmaoa.

References

  1. 1 2 "Home - Lanmaoa asiatica v1.0". mycocosm.jgi.doe.gov.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Domnauer C (12 November 2025). "Experts Explore New Mushroom Which Causes Fairytale-Like Hallucinations". Natural History Museum of Utah. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Nuwer R (22 January 2026). "'They saw them on their dishes when eating': The mushroom making people hallucinate dozens of tiny humans". BBC Home. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
  4. ↑ Wong M (July 15, 2023). "Mushroom diplomacy: US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sets off culinary craze in China". CNN.
  5. ↑ "见手青有毒也抢着吃！掌握3个技巧，鲜吃安全不中毒" [Rushing to eat Jianshouqing even if it's poisonous? Three tips to keep you safe]. www.163.com. 20 November 2025.
  6. ↑ Li H, Zhang H, Zhang Y, Zhou J, Yin Y, He Q, et al. (January 2022). "Mushroom Poisoning Outbreaks - China, 2021". China CDC Weekly. 4 (3): 35–40. doi:10.46234/ccdcw2022.010 (inactive 21 December 2025). PMC   8796718 . PMID   35586461. Archived from the original on 2025-05-12.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of December 2025 (link)
  7. ↑ Dai R, Duan Z, Han B, Peng Y, Zhu L, Shen Y, et al. (July 2025). "Untargeted Metabolomic Analysis Using UPLC-MS/MS Reveals Metabolic Changes Associated With Lanmaoa asiatica Poisoning". Food Science & Nutrition. 13 (7) e70583. doi:10.1002/fsn3.70583. PMC   12237617 . PMID   40635726.
  8. ↑ Zhang X, Liu L, Luo J, Peng X (November 2022). "Anti-aging potency correlates with metabolites from in vitro fermentation of edible fungal polysaccharides using human fecal intestinal microflora". Food & Function. 13 (22): 11592–11603. doi:10.1039/d2fo01951e. PMID   36268605.
  9. ↑ Yang N, Zhang S, Zhou P, Zhang W, Luo X, Cao J, et al. (December 2022). "Analysis of Volatile Flavor Substances in the Enzymatic Hydrolysate of Lanmaoa asiatica Mushroom and Its Maillard Reaction Products Based on E-Nose and GC-IMS". Foods. 11 (24): 4056. doi: 10.3390/foods11244056 . PMC   9778328 . PMID   36553801.
  10. ↑ Wang Y, Lüli Y, Li X, Yang ZL, Luo H (May 2024). "Pulvinic Acid Derivative Pigments in Lanmaoa asiatica and L. macrocarpa". Chemistry & Biodiversity. 21 (5) e202301996. doi:10.1002/cbdv.202301996. PMID   38509847.
  11. ↑ Zhang B, Yang L, Ma QY, Xie QY, Guo JC, Dai HF, et al. (June 2025). "Chemical constituents from the fruiting bodies of Lanmaoa asiatica and their anti-inflammatory activity". Fitoterapia. 183 106531. doi:10.1016/j.fitote.2025.106531. PMID   40204044.
  12. ↑ "'They saw them on their dishes when eating': The mushroom making people hallucinate dozens of tiny humans". www.bbc.com. 2026-01-22. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
  13. ↑ RD Mary Lee Chin, MS (2016-08-12). "Umami Flavor is Highly Valued in Asian Cooking". MSGdish. Retrieved 2026-01-22.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ↑ "'They saw them on their dishes when eating': The mushroom making people hallucinate dozens of tiny humans". www.bbc.com. 2026-01-22. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
  15. ↑ Sullivan H (2023-08-16). "Janet Yellen inadvertently ate hallucinogenic mushrooms in China – and started a trend". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2025-12-18.
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