Methylene blue is both a dye and an FDA-approved medication. Described as the first fully synthetic drug used in medicine, methylene blue was initially synthesized by a German chemist in 1876, and 15 years later, it was employed as a treatment for malaria. This dye/medicine continued to play an important role as an antimalarial medication during the First and Second World Wars. In the late 19th century, methylene blue was explored as a treatment for schizophrenia, and later, it was employed as a treatment for urinary tract infections, an antidote for carbon monoxide and cyanide poisoning, and a drug for septic shock. Today, this amazing medicant is being explored as a treatment for neuropsychiatric conditions.
The chemical structure of methylene blue is similar to that of both tricyclic antidepressants and the anti-seizure medicine carbamazepine. However it’s mechanisms of action are quite different from these medications. Some of these mechanisms are dose dependent, meaning that higher doses can have the opposite effects of lower doses. The specific mechanisms of methylene blue include antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory effects; blockade of GABA-A receptors; inhibition of monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A); improvement in mitochondrial functioning; and inhibition of tau protein aggregation.
Methylene blue also affects the transmission of the primary excitatory neurotransmitter in the human brain, glutamate, by inhibiting N-methyl-aspartate (NMDA) receptors. This results in an........