Researchers found that the US Food and Drug Administration approved 15 new antidepressants between 2009 and early 2025 and identified 18 additional agents in Phase 3 development for major depressive disorder. Researchers analyzed US Food and Drug Administration-approved psychiatric drugs and investigational compounds for depression, detailing mechanisms, dosing, efficacy, and safety. Many newer and pipeline agents act beyond traditional monoaminergic pathways, targeting glutamatergic NMDA, GABA-A, and kappa-opioid receptors, or functioning as 5-HT1A partial agonists or serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors. All new oral agents were designed for once-daily administration.

Source: BMC Psychiatry