Flexible Dose Titration Add-on Study to Treat Major Depressive Disorder

This is a double blind, randomized, placebo controlled, parallel group, flexible dose titration, add-on study. Male or female subjects aged 18-70 years suffering from Major Depressive Disorder according to DSM-IV, with a HAMD-17 score greater than 21 and a CGI-Severity of Illness score greater or equal to 4, will be started on open labeled citalopram treatment. The dose of citalopram may be increased form 20mg to 40mg over a six week period, depending on investigator assessment of tolerability and efficacy. At the end of this treatment, subjects with a HAMD-17 score greater or equal to 14 and a CGI-Severity of Illness score greater or equal to 4 will be considered as partial or non-responders and will be entered into the double blind phase of the study. Subjects will be randomized to either mecamylamine or placebo for a further 8 weeks. Citalopram medication will remain constant while mecamylamine (or placebo) can be increased from 5.0 to 7.5 to 10.0mg based on investigator assessment of tolerability and efficacy. Plasma samples for citalopram assay will be collected at the start and end of the double blind phase to exclude any mecamylamine effect being due to a drug:drug interaction. Approximately 500 subjects will be entered into the open-label phase of the study and approximately 160 into the double blind phase. The study will be conducted in India and the USA.