Methylene Blue and Genetic Cautions

Hi everyone -

Methylene blue:
This week's new article was requested by a couple of members who wanted to know more about methylene blue. I've written short bits and pieces about methylene blue in prior articles, and this new article brings it all together along with new research studies on this interesting compound.

Methylene blue was originally developed as a dye, but it is now used as a drug in certain medical conditions.

It's been making the rounds on social media as a cognitive enhancer due to its ability to increase mitochondrial function. I first read about it a decade ago in some interesting studies on neurodegenerative diseases.

However, methylene blue is not for everyone. There are genetic reasons why it could be risky for some, and there are a number of possible drug interactions. I'll let you read the full article for the details.

Apologies: I wanted to apologize to everyone who received the Genetic Lifehacks welcome email last week. In making an update to that email, it was somehow automatically resent to a few thousand people. I'm sorry for the confusion!

Things not to be spoken of: I had been working for a few months on organizing my notes about research studies that I found interesting (and somewhat controversial). Studies that I had come across that weren't a good fit for Genetic Lifehacks...

My plan was to open up the online notebook to members in case anyone else was interested. While uploading some of the studies to Notion (an online notebook/storage/website tool), I noticed that some of the .pdfs I had downloaded from PubMed would disappear a few seconds after uploading to Notion. I tried saving the .pdfs again, changing the name, and even downloading them directly from the journal sites.

Finally, it dawned on me that Notion might not allow certain things. Sure enough, they scan everything and don't allow some things on their site, like graphic and harmful content -- or anything they consider misinformation. Apparently, peer reviewed studies on repurposed drugs for melanoma is a topic that should not be uploaded to their server. I contacted Notion and they confirmed that was the case.

I'm scrapping that project for now -- but letting you all know about it as just one example of how our online world is shaped by what we can't see as much as what we do see.

Stay curious,

~ Debbie

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Methylene Blue: Genetic Connections and Research Studies

Key takeaways:
~ Methylene blue is a unique chemical that acts as a redox agent influencing mitochondrial energy production, neurotransmitter metabolism, and inflammatory pathways.
~ Studies show that it holds potential for Alzheimer's and neurodegenerative diseases by enhancing neuronal energy and reducing oxidative stress.
~ Methylene blue also has antiviral properties and is a sensitizer for photobiomodulation.
~ Genetic variants in G6PD and MAOA may interact with methylene blue, which means some people should use caution or avoid MB.

Methylene Blue: Background Science

Methylene blue was first developed as a textile dye but was quickly found to be very useful for staining cells under the microscope. Early medical uses included the use of methylene blue to treat malaria.

In larger amounts, methylene blue turns urine a blue color, so doctors added it to psychiatric medications in order to see if the patient was compliant with taking the medication. This led to the discovery that methylene blue itself had antipsychotic effects by inhibiting MAO-A.[ref]

Currently, methylene blue is used primarily as a medication for methemoglobinemia and during certain types of heart surgery to increase oxygenation of the blood. It is also used in periodontal health combined with phototherapy.

As a drug, methylene blue is also known as methylthioninium chloride. In a clinical capacity, it is used for exposure to certain drugs or environmental toxins such as nitrates, carbon monoxide, or cyanide. It is also sometimes still used to treat malaria. [ref]

What does methylene blue do?

• Methylene blue acts as a redox recycler, moving electrons.

• In the mitochondria, methylene blue can act in complex I and complex IV as an alternative electron transporter.

• It can protect against oxidative stress produced in the mitochondria.[ref]

• Methylene blue easily crosses the blood-brain barrier, which allows methylene blue to protect against oxidative stress in the brain.

• At low concentrations, methylene blue inhibits viral replication in some viruses.[ref]

• Research also shows that methylene blue decreases activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and reduces neuroinflammation.[ref]

We will dig into all of this and more, but first, a word of caution...

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What I've been reading:

1.) The individual determinants of morning dream recall

This is an interesting study on how and why some people are more likely to recall their dreams. The researchers did sleep studies involving brain waves, activity, and cognitive measures on over 200 people to try to figure out why some people are more likely to recall their dreams. The results showed: "We found that attitude towards dreaming, proneness to mind wandering, and sleep patterns are associated with the probability of reporting a dream upon morning awakening. The likelihood of recalling dream content was predicted by age and vulnerability to interference. Moreover, dream recall appeared to be influenced by night-by-night changes in sleep patterns and showed seasonal fluctuations."

2.) Altered immune landscape of cervical lymph nodes reveals Epstein-Barr virus signature in multiple sclerosis

Researchers from Finland found that the lymph nodes of people with MS have altered B cells and an immune signature "that resembled a lytic EBV infection."

Epstein-Barr infection has been previously shown to be a big risk factor for MS, and this adds to that knowledge with information on how the Epstein-Barr virus is active in B-cells in the lymph nodes of people with MS.