TM Editors' Note: This article discusses penny stocks and/or microcaps. Such stocks are easily manipulated; do your own careful due diligence.

The use of either functional (i.e. edible) or psychedelic (i.e. psilocybin or "magic") mushrooms in the treatment of mental issues such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, PTSD, opioid addiction, alcoholism, depression, anxiety, and eating disorders suggests that the fledging "medicinal" mushroom industry is on the threshold of becoming the next billion-dollar industry.

Index Inclusion Criteria

To provide insights into the progress of this fledgling sector's growth we have created the munKNEE Magic Mushroom Stock Index to track each constituent's stock price performance to complement its munKNEE Pure-Play Pot Stock Index. 12 stocks are eligible for inclusion in the index based on the following criteria:

• a market capitalization between US$10M and US$75M
• a stock that trades between US$0.10/share and US$1/share

For the record, there are 18 other stocks trading in the medicinal mushroom sector that are not eligible for inclusion in the munKNEE Magic Mushroom Stock Index, as follows:

• the 3 largest medicinal mushroom stocks in the sector are not included in the Index because they either trade in excess of $1/share and/or have a market cap in excess of $75M, namely, Compass (CMPS), MindMed (MMEDF) and Field Trip (FTRPF) as these inclusions would make comparative analysis and Index averages meaningless. As such, they will be included as a footnote to the munKNEE Magic  Mushroom Stock Index updates as to performance.
• the 10 smallest medicinal mushroom stocks in the sector are not included in the Index because they either trade at less than $0.10/share and/or have a market cap of less than $10M, namely: Aion (ANTCF), Better Plant (VEGGF), Codebase (BKLLF), Ehave (EHVVF), Graph Blockchain (REGRF), Green Star (GTSIF), Minerco (MINE), New Wave (TRMNF), Red Light (TRUFF) and Thoughtful Brands (PEMTF).
• 5 of the medicinal mushroom stocks in the sector are not included in the Index because they trade exclusively in Canadian dollars in addition to being extremely small in market capitalization and trading for less than the equivalent of US$1/share, namely: Core One (COOL), Cybin (CYBN), Entheon (ENBI), Newscope-Pharmather (PHRM) and Pure Extracts (PULL).

Finally, Nutritional High (SPLIF) is not included as its research and development of psychedelic drugs is focused on a compound from the Peyote cactus.

Below is a brief introduction to each of the 12 eligible companies in the munKNEE Magic Mushroom Stock Index and their performance for the week ended November 6th. (All prices in USD)

1. Psyched Wellness (DCNPF) +450.0% to $0.11 (Mkt. Cap: $10.9M)
2. Silo Pharma (SILO) +110% to $0.42 (Mkt. Cap: $25.5M)
3. Champignon (SHRMF) +22.9% to $0.43 (Mkt. Cap: $72.6M)
4. Revive (RVVTF) +20.0% to $0.18 (Mkt. Cap: $35.2M)
5. Numinus (LKYSF) +18.8% to $0.38 (Mkt. Cap: $43.6M)
6. Nova Mentis (LIBFF) +15.4% to $0.15 (Mkt. Cap: $9.1M)
7. Hollister (HSTRF) +11.1% to $0.10 (Mkt. Cap: $18.5M)
8. Seelos (SEEL) +8.1% to $0.80 (Mkt. Cap: $44.1M)
9. Jaguar (JAGX) +5.0% to $0.21 (Mkt. Cap: $11.2%)
10. Havn (HAVLF) +3.0% to $0.69 (Mkt. Cap: $46.0M)
11. Mydecine (MYCOF) No Change at $0.15 (Mkt. Cap: $21.9M)
12. Mind Cure (MCURF) -14.0% to $0.48 (Mkt. Cap: $28.5M)

The average performance of the above 12 stocks last week was +14.5%. Interestingly, in comparison, the  munKNEE Pure-Play Pot Stock Index of the 25 pure-play cannabis stocks that trade in excess of US$1/share was +25.1% this past week.

About Each Constituent

For the sake of comparing companies using one type of mushroom vs. another the list below is divided into two segments, namely functional and psychedelic.

Psychedelic Mushroom Category

1. Mydecine Innovations Group Inc. (MYCOF): Mydecine is the only company in the world that can legally produce, transfer, sell and export pharmaceutical-grade psilocybin from whole-mushroom extraction and can do so at a tiny fraction of the cost of synthetic psilocybin production. It is conducting the world’s first clinical trials into the efficacy of psilocybin in treating PTSD in collaboration with the Dutch Royal Army,  For more information on the company visit its website here.

2. Numinus Wellness Inc. (LKYSF): Numinus combines clinical operations with psychedelic drug R&D and cultivation of Psilocybe mushrooms, for the purpose of extracting psilocybin from them.  For more information on the company visit its website here.

3. Silo Pharma Inc. (SILO): SILO is focused on providing proprietary psychedelic therapeutics to patients suffering from end-of-life anxiety, Alzheimer's, depression, addiction, PTSD, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. For more information on the company visit its website here.

4. Revive Therapeutics Ltd. (RVVTF): Revive entered a Phase 1 clinical trial in August with the University of Wisconsin System to study the safety and feasibility of psilocybin in adults with Methamphetamine Use Disorder.  For more information on the company visit its website here.

5. HAVN Life Sciences Inc. (HAVLF): HAVN is engaged in the research and development of psychopharmacological products, including the formulation of standardized psychoactive compounds derived from fungi.  For more information on the company visit its website  here.

6. Champignon Brands Inc. (SHRMF): Champignon is focused on treatments for depression through the development of ketamine compounds and a network of ketamine-based treatment clinics. For more information on the company visit its website here.

7. Hollister Biosciences Inc. (HSTRF): Hollister acquired AlphaMind Brands for C$1.2M to gain exposure to the psychedelic arena and as a complement to its cannabis brand. For more information on the company visit its website here.

8. Jaguar Health Inc. (JAGX): While primarily focused on developing gastrointestinal products for humans and animals, the company announced this week that it is launching its mental health Entheogen Therapeutics Initiative with the goal to discover new and groundbreaking natural novel psychoactive plant-based compounds that treat mood disorders, addiction, neurodegenerative diseases, and more. For more information on the company visit its website here.

9. NOVA MENTIS Life Science Corp. (NOVA): Pilz Bioscience Corp., which has signed a non-binding letter of intent to be acquired by Nova Mentis, is developing medicinal psychedelics for neuro-inflammatory conditions with a significant cognitive component and high unmet therapeutic needs with an initial focus is on Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). For more information on the company visit its website here.

10. Seelos Therapeutics Inc. (SEEL): Seelos announced in June its final data from Phase I of its study of intra-nasal racemic ketamine (SLS-002) as a rapid, effective treatment for refractory depression and suicidality and is beginning a double-blind, placebo-controlled Proof of Concept study for Acute Suicidal Ideation and Behavior in patients with Major Depressive Disorder this fall. For more information on the company visit its website here.

Functional Mushroom Category

1. Mind Cure Health Inc. (MCURF): Given that it could take +10 years, and potentially +$100M, to bring a new psychedelic drug to market, Mind Cure is developing products from the 12 species of edible ("functional") mushrooms that are recognized as promoting brain health as opposed to the 100 or so species containing the highly psychoactive substance, psilocybin.

Functional mushrooms, like psychedelic drugs, also represent a multi-billion market in their own right and this market is already open for business today which will allow Mind Cure to offset some of the R&D costs associated with psychedelics research with near-term revenue streams from functional mushrooms.  For more information on the company visit its website here.

2. Psyched Wellness Ltd. (PSYC): Psyched's objective is to create premium mushroom-derived products in the emerging functional mushroom food category led by its flagship "poisonous" mushroom extract product, Amanita Muscaria infused tinctures, which have been shown to soothe the body, ease physical distress and help with sleeping. It should be noted that Amanita Muscaria does not contain any deadly amanitin toxins found in most other poisonous mushrooms and the muscarine in the product is found in such minute quantities that it is clinically insignificant. For more information on the company visit its website here.

Larger Mkt. Cap Medicinal Mushroom Stocks

• Compass (CMPS) +21.0% to $38.71 (Mkt. Cap: $1.3B)
• MindMed (MMEDF) +18.2% to $0.91 (Mkt. Cap: $273.5M)
• Field Trip (FTRPF) +15.9% to $2.33 (Mkt. Cap: $84.1M)

1. COMPASS Pathways Plc (CMPS): COMPASS has a psilocybin-based therapy for treatment-resistant depression in Phase 2 of clinical trials. For more information on the company visit its website here.

2. Mind Medicine Inc. (MMEDF): MindMed has three drug initiatives that use psychedelic mushrooms already in Phase 2 with several other initiatives in Phase 1 trials. For more information on the company visit its website here.

3. Field Trip Health Ltd. (FTRPF): Field Trip is conducting advanced research on plant-based psychedelics such as ketamine as a treatment option for PTSD. For more information on the company visit its website here.

Psilocybin Therapy Legalization

Psilocybin therapy has been approved in the state of Oregon making it the first U.S. state to legalize a form of psychedelic-assisted therapy. Adults over the age of 21 years will be able to access such therapy in a controlled, therapeutic environment and there is currently no restriction on eligibility criteria to access treatment.

Currently, psilocybin is already decriminalized in Denver and Oakland. There's a good chance that Oregon's vote will create a domino effect of access to psilocybin-assisted therapy for those who can benefit from it the most.

Future munKNEE Magic Mushroom Stock Index reports will likely be published on a week-ending basis going forward due to the small number of constituents and the "penny-stock" nature of almost all of them.