London scientists will trial the use of a psychoactive drug to treat symptoms of severe post-traumatic stress disorder.
Researchers at Clerkenwell Health and Transcend Therapeutics will assess whether methylone, a Class B drug, could be a safe treatment for the mental health condition.
Methylone is an entactogen, a class of drug that speeds up the body’s physical responses and produces feelings of emotional openness and empathy. Its effects have been compared with that of MDMA, but it is short-lasting and does not induce hallucinations.
The trial is the first in the UK to assess the therapeutic potential of methylone and comes amid growing scientific interest in the potential of psychoactive drugs to treat mental health conditions.
Researchers are already exploring the potential use of MDMA, magic mushrooms and ketamine for the treatment of depression, anorexia, alcoholism and PTSD.
One in 10 people in the UK are expected to experience PTSD at some point in their lives. Symptoms include anxiety, depression and recurrent distressing images and thoughts of a traumatic event. The only approved treatments for PTSD are antidepressants and talking therapy.
For the trial, patients aged between 18 and 70 with PTSD will be given methylone capsules once a week for 4 weeks at Clerkenwell's lab near Harley Street and monitored for an additional 6 weeks. Another group will receive a placebo.
Scientists believe that methylone could be well-suited for integration into the NHS as it does not take a long time for doctors to administrate and has a short duration. Studies have also indicated that repeated doses of methylone do not deplete brain seratonin like MDMA.
Previous clinical case reports published by the University of Yale have noted that methylone produced “acute and enduring improvements in PTSD symptoms, without any notable lasting adverse effects”.
Dr Henry Fisher, Chief Scientific Officer at Clerkenwell Health, said: “The status quo for mental health treatment just isn’t working, and the NHS is struggling to cope with the pressure.
“By rolling out these clinical trials in the UK we hope to contribute to a growing body of research which supports the development of the next wave of innovative treatments for neuropsychiatric diseases.”
Methylone was first synthesised by chemists more than 25 years, but did not become a controlled substance in the UK until 2010.
Transcend Therapeutics expect to have top-line data from the study by the end of the year.
Blake Mandell, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Transcend Therapeutics, said: “We know from a published clinical case series and other research that methylone could hold tremendous promise for the treatment of PTSD. We are grateful to Clerkenwell Health for partnering on this trial, which will provide invaluable data on the efficacy and safety of methylone for PTSD.”
