psychedelics

Individualised dosing of a synthetic inhalable formulation of mebufotenine, a psychedelic substance, led to improvements in depressive symptoms compared with placebo and was well tolerated. These are the results of a phase 2 clinical trial published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, which includes Spanish participation. According to the authors, this supports its potential as a novel, fast-acting treatment for treatment-resistant depression.

A meta-analysis published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry showed that psychedelic-assisted therapy is no more effective against depression than traditional antidepressants in clinical trials. The research found differences in the use of double-blind methods—that is, when neither the participants nor the researchers know which treatment each group is receiving—which minimises subjective influences on the results. Double-blinding made a difference in the case of traditional drugs, but not in the case of psychedelics, confirming that these trials are, in practice, always open-label.

The study of psychedelic drugs in pharmacological treatments had its eureka moment with chemist Albert Hofmann's famous bike ride under the influence of LSD in 1938 and then developed over decades, but with Richard Nixon it was shelved. In recent years, it has resurfaced in hospitals and laboratories around the world. Last week, the Congress of Deputies hosted a conference on these substances. We explain what they are, what they are used for, the current state of research, and their risks, with the help of expert sources.

Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is responsible for the psychedelic effects of ayahuasca. According to the results of a phase IIa clinical trial published in Nature Medicine, this molecule improved depressive symptoms in adults with depression after one dose. The trial included 34 people, 17 of whom received intravenous DMT. This second group showed greater improvements in depressive symptoms than the control group. After two weeks, in the second part of the trial, DMT was administered to all participants and the antidepressant effects lasted for three months. Adverse effects were mainly pain at the injection site, nausea and transient anxiety.

A dose of psilocybin—a hallucinogenic substance—administered to groups of 3 or 4 people suffering from cancer and depression may help reduce their depressive symptoms, according to a clinical trial conducted in the United States. The study involved 30 patients who also received individual and group therapeutic support. In another article, also published in the journal Cancer, the authors examine how the study participants perceived the therapy.

A phase 1 clinical trial has tested the use of psilocybin to treat anorexia nervosa. Ten women with the disorder were given 25 milligrams of the hallucinogen along with psychological support. The results show that the treatment is safe and tolerable. Four patients showed an improvement, but the authors acknowledge that, because of the small sample size and the absence of a control group, "the results are preliminary and further research is needed". The results are published in the journal Nature Medicine.

A phase 2 clinical trial has examined the use of the hallucinogen psilocybin in different amounts for the treatment of resistant depression. The results are published in the New England Journal of Medicine.