College student discovers psychedelic fungus that eluded LSD inventor

A photograph of Corinne Hazel, a WVU environmental microbiology student, examining a morning glory with Periglandula clandestina.

A university student has discovered an elusive fungus that produces chemicals with similar effects to the psychedelic drug LSD.

Corinne Hazel, an environmental microbiology major at West Virginia University in Morgantown, spotted the fungus growing on morning glories. These flowering plants belong to a large family with many species, and Hazel specifically found the fungus in a variety of Mexican morning glory called "Heavenly Blue." The fungus also grows on varieties called "Pearly Gates" and "Flying Saucers," according to a recent study published April 22 in the journal Mycologia.