Experts explore Lanmaoa asiatica, a wild mushroom linked to lilliputian hallucinations across Papua New Guinea, China, and the Philippines

Lanmaoa asiatica, sold in parts of Asia as “jian shou qing,” is linked to lilliputian hallucinations, including reports of tiny people marching around the real world. The article traces similar “mushroom madness” accounts across distant cultures, from Papua New Guinea (locally called “nonda”) to Yunnan, China (jian shou qing) and Indigenous communities in the Northern Cordillera of the Philippines (locally called “ansisit” and “Sedesdem”). In multiple regions, undercooked mushrooms are culturally recognized as producing the same striking, clinically defined syndrome. Scientific work at the Natural History Museum of Utah uses DNA sequencing and chemical and genomic analyses to identify the species and investigate causation. Analyses reportedly find no traces of known psychoactive compounds, suggesting a potentially new bioactive substance, while ongoing lab fractionation and mouse testing aim to isolate the specific molecules responsible.