Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) received the first-ever federal grant to study whether "magic" mushrooms can be used to treat depression.."There has been a growing interest and body of knowledge regarding the use of psychedelic drugs for the treatment of mental illness and addictions," Dr. Ishrat Husain, lead investigator of the upcoming study, said via a news release..“Previous clinical trials have reported large and sustained antidepressant effects of psilocybin when combined with intensive psychotherapy.".Researchers are going to explore if psilocybin, the chemical compound in magic mushrooms that induces a so-called 'trip,' can alleviate treatment-resistant depression in adults. The trial will recruit 60 adults with treatment-resistant depression over the course of four years..A random third of the participants will be given a full dose of psilocybin, plus a drug that blocks serotonin receptors in the brain and inhibits the drug’s psychedelic effect. Another group will be given psilocybin plus a placebo. The final group will receive a placebo plus the serotonin blocker..All participants will also receive 12 hours of psychotherapy, which is the current practice during psychedelic research. The clinical trial results will serve as preliminary findings on the antidepressant effect of this drug combination, leading to future research to validate the potential approach for treating depression without intensive psychotherapy.."If this study shows psilocybin is still effective at treating depression without inducing a psychedelic state, it could remove the time-intensive and costly need for psychological support during the treatment. This would make the treatment more accessible both for healthcare funders, and for those seeking treatment," Husain said..CAMH researchers already led studies involving psilocybin and ketamine. Recently, CAMH was the only Canadian site for the world's largest clinical trial of psilocybin in mental health. .The news of this study comes as a new review found low amounts of serotonin in the brain actually does not cause depression, which contradicts the established science on the subject..The review by University College London suggested depression is more likely to be linked to "stressful life events."."Many people take antidepressants because they have been led to believe their depression has a biochemical cause, but this new research suggests this belief is not grounded in evidence," said lead author Joanna Moncrieff, a professor of Psychiatry at UCL.
