(0) Study concludes that psilocybin findings should be explored further in larger studies London, UK, April 15, 2021(NEJM) yesterday, which showed signals of positive activity in COMP360 psilocybin compared with the standard antidepressant escitalopram, for major depressive disorder (MDD). The study was designed and conducted by a research team at Imperial College London, using COMPASS's COMP360 psilocybin. This was an exploratory, randomised, double-blind clinical study. Its aim was to compare the efficacy and mechanisms of action of psilocybin with a six-week course of escitalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), for MDD. The study included 59 participants; 30 were randomly assigned to the psilocybin arm, and 29 to the escitalopram arm. Participants in the psilocybin arm received two doses of 25mg psilocybin three weeks apart, with psychological support delivered prior to, during and after each psilocybin administration, plus six weeks of daily placebo capsules. The escitalopram arm received two doses of 1mg psilocybin (presumed negligible effect) three weeks apart, with equivalent psychological support to the psilocybin arm, plus six weeks of daily escitalopram capsules, 10mg for the first three weeks titrated to 20mg for the following three weeks.