A new UK study shows that administering psilocybin may be a valid option in the treatment of drug-resistant depression. Are they really “magic mushrooms”?
Researchers from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, & Neuroscience (IoPPN) of King's College London, in collaboration with COMPASS Pathways, have determined that psilocybin can be safely administered in doses of 10 mg or 25 mg to up to six participants at a time.
Results of the study, published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, indicated that psilocybin use had no adverse short- or long-term effects on cognitive functioning or emotional processing.
National Institute for Health Research Clinical Scientist Dr. James Rucker, lead author of the King's IoPPN study and honorary advisor psychiatrist at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, said:
“This thorough study is an important first demonstration that the co-administration of psilocybin can be further explored.
As we think about how psilocybin therapy (if approved) might be administered in the future, it's important to demonstrate the feasibility and safety of giving it to more than one person at a time so that we can think about how to scale up the therapy.
This therapy shows promise for people with serious mental health problems, such as treatment-resistant depression (TRD) and PTSD.
They can be extremely disabling, distressing and disruptive due to these issues, but current treatment options for these conditions are ineffective or partially effective for many people.”
What is psilocybin in “magic mushrooms”?
Psilocybin is a psychedelic found in a small number of fungi, also known as “magic mushrooms” or “magic mushrooms”.
These mushrooms have become well known, but in the past half decade they have largely been associated with recreational drug use, hippie culture and anti-establishment groups. There is relatively little awareness of the health and therapeutic potential of the substance.
About the study
The study recruited 89 healthy participants with no recent (within one year) psilocybin use.
Of these, 60 were given a dose of 10 mg or 25 mg of psilocybin in a controlled environment, while being assisted by one-on-one with trained psychotherapists. The other 29 participants received a placebo as well as professional psychological support.
The participants were followed for 12 weeks. According to the researchers, during this time, study participants were assessed for a number of changes, including sustained attention, memory and planning, as well as their ability to process emotions.
Professor Guy Goodwin, Chief Medical Officer, COMPASS Pathways, said:
“This study was an early part of our clinical development program for COMP360 psilocybin therapy.
It examined the safety and feasibility of co-administration of psilocybin, with 1:1 support, in healthy participants, and provided a strong foundation to which we have now added positive results from our Phase IIb study in 233 patients with TRD, and from our open-label study in patients taking SSRI antidepressants in addition to psilocybin therapy.
We look forward to finalizing plans for our Phase III program, which we expect to start in Q2022 XNUMX.”
Sources including Canex (EN), independent (EN), Scitech (EN), sky (EN)
