Psychedelic Drug DMT To Undergo First Clinical Trial To Treat Depression

A London-based neuropharmacological company, Small Pharma, has received regulatory approval in the United Kingdom to undertake the world's first clinical trials using N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in human patients to treat depression.

DMT is a short-lasting (20 minutes at a maximum) psychedelic drug which has long garnered respect, love, and fear from the psychedelic community due to its powerful effects. Some argue it is the most intense of the classic psychedelics. But by weight, it is dwarfed in potency by LSD, which is psychoactive in the micrograms. Due to this, DMT users can take tremendously high doses of the drug and return to relative sobriety rapidly. The standard experienced intensity of a DMT trip is as high as it is, not because it is more powerful, per se, but rather because the average dose aimed for can be far greater than is consumed with other, longer-lasting psychedelics. The rapidness of its effects and additional difficulty in integrating such an experience, or receiving therapy throughout the experience, have left DMT's antidepressant effects under-researched compared to LSD and psilocybin. Although, if anecdotal reports are anything to go by, there may be great therapeutic potential in the molecule and its effectiveness may be bolstered, rather than diminished, by its short duration of action.

Small Pharma is working in collaboration with Imperial College London's Centre for Psychedelic Research and has received Phase I/IIa approval, aiming to test the compound in healthy volunteers and patients suffering from major depressive disorder. We look forward to seeing further results!

Author: Ted Burston