Can a depression drug tame the psychedelic trip without killing the benefits?
NCT ID NCT07210112
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This phase 2 trial tests whether adding the antidepressant trazodone to psilocybin can reduce the intense psychedelic effects while keeping the mood-lifting benefits. 112 adults with treatment-resistant depression will receive either psilocybin alone, psilocybin plus a low or high dose of trazodone, or placebo. The main goal is to see if the combination improves depression scores after one month.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- psilocybin and trazodone
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a depression treatment that reduces severe symptoms without the intense psychedelic experience.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early proof-of-concept study with only 112 people. It may fail to show benefit, and the combination could still cause side effects or not work for everyone.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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About 112 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Oct 2025
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2030
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Patient with major depressive episode without psychotic features according to DSM-5 criteria; * Treatment-resistant depressive episode, i.e. failure to respond to at least two lines of antidepressant medication at an adequate dose and for a sufficient period of time (6 weeks according to the MGH-ATRQ); * MADRS ≥ 20; * Written signed informed consent; * Patient covered by the social security system. Exclusion Criteria: Psychiatric comorbidities known from medical history or identified during inclusion assessment: * Bipolar disorder; * Schizophrenia and psychosis; * Personal or family history of psychotic disorder; * History of personality disorder; * Post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, eating disorders; * Alcohol or substance use disorder in past 12 months or positive urine toxins at time of assessment; * Significant suicide risk, as defined by: (a) suicidal ideation as indicated by items 4 or 5 on the C-SSRS within the past six months, at Screening, during the Screening Period, or at Baseline (b) demonstrating suicidal behaviors in the past six months, or; (c). clinical assessment of significant suicidal risk or risk of self-injury during participant interview; * Patient with a psychiatric decompensation following a previous use of psychedelic substance like LSD; Comorbidities or somatic specificities: * Pregnancy and breastfeeding women; * Cardiovascular history (myocardial infarction, stroke, heart rhythm disorder, uncontrolled hypertension, QT interval prolongation, tachycardia and poor cardiovascular health); * Uncontrolled diabetes; * Uncontrolled thyroid disorder; * Epilepsy; * Parkinson's disease treated by selegiline or levodopa; * HIV treated by ritonavir and indinavir; * Active infection treated by erythromycin; * Fungal infection treated by ketoconazole and itraconazole; * Contraindications to MRI; Concomitant therapies: * 5-HT antagonist treatment2A (including quetiapine, olanzapine, aripiprazole); * Lithium treatment; * Treatment with buprenorphine or opioids, clonidine, methyldopa, digoxin, Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI), aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) inhibitors and alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) inhibitors, St. John's Wort, or warfarin should be discontinued completely before study drug administration; * Use of electroconvulsive therapy and/or transcranial magnetic stimulation, during the current depressive episode; or lifetime vagus nerve stimulation, deep brain stimulation, and/or ablative neurosurgery; * Use of psychedelics (psilocybin, lysergic acid, ayahuasca, mescaline and derivatives) during current episode; Legal status: * Persons deprived of their liberty by judicial or administrative decision, persons under compulsory psychiatric care; * Persons under legal protection or unable to give consent; Other: \- Any clinical manifestation which, in the opinion of the investigator, may interfere with the interpretation of study results or constitute a health risk to the participant if he or she participates in the study.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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GHU Paris Psychiatrie and Neurosciences
Paris, 75014, France
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