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The For Alzheimer 's Disease

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Methylthioninium chloride, the active ingredient in Rember , has shown to prevent the progression of Alzheimer’s Disease in early clinical trials. TauRx Therapeutics developed the drug in collaboration with the University of Aberdeen to inhibit the aggregation of Tau proteins as well as enhancing key mitochondrial activity (such as Complex IV) (Atamna 22). Tau proteins stabilize microtubules and are abundant in the neurons of the central nervous system. It is believed that Alzheimer’s disease can originate from Tau proteins improperly stabilizing microtubules, such as when they aggregate together (Harrington). Figure 1: Structure of Methylthioninium chloride Methylene blue (methylthioninium chloride) has several other non-FDA approved applications aside from its possible use for Alzheimer’s treatment. It is frequently used as a dye in medical procedures, such as colonoscopies and sentinel lymph node dissections. 1 When combined with light, methylene blue has been used to treat West Nile virus, resistant plaque psoriasis, hepatitis C, and even hypotension during heart surgery (Papin 68, Salah 8, Müller-Breitkreutz 56). Akorn Pharmaceuticals and Sigma-Aldrich currently sells methylene blue for these applications. The global market for Alzheimer’s Disease treatment will more than double in value from $4.9 billion to an estimated $13.3 billion by 2023 with a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 10.50 percent (Nicholson 1). Currently, the four Alzheimer’s drugs available only ease the

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