A trial in the UK will test whether psilocybin, the active compound in magic mushrooms, can reduce relapse in people recovering from opioid addiction. Led by Imperial College London, the study will include 28 participants who have recently completed detoxification from street opioids. Each participant will receive psilocybin therapy as part of the intervention.
A single 25mg dose of the psychedelic drug psilocybin, given alongside psychological support, may improve symptoms of treatment-resistant depression. This phase II trial, the largest of its kind to date, was conducted across 22 sites in 10 countries and published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
In the largest trial of the psychedelic drug psilocybin to date, a single 25mg dose combined with psychological support improved symptoms of treatment-resistant depression for up to 12 weeks. Previous work had suggested an antidepressant mechanism for psilocybin therapy and shown it is at least as effective as other treatments.
A small phase II trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that psilocybin therapy is at least as effective as the antidepressant escitalopram for treating depression. Participants received either two sessions of psilocybin therapy in a specialist clinical setting or a course of escitalopram. The results suggest comparable antidepressant effects between the two treatments.