Anatomy of An Epidemic (2010)
“—DR. LOUIS M. ORR, AMA PRESIDENT (1958)1 It may seem odd to begin an investigation of a modern-day epidemic with a visit back to one of the great moments in medical history, but if we are going to understand how our society came to believe that Thorazine kicked off a psychopharmacological revolution, we need to go back to the laboratory of German scientist Paul Ehrlich. He was the originator of the notion that “magic bullets” could be found to fight infectious diseases, and when he succeeded, society thought that the future would bring miracle cures of every kind.
Born in East Prussia in 1854, Ehrlich spent his early years as a scientist researching the use of aniline dyes as biological stains. He and others discovered that the dyes, which were used in the textile industry to color cloth, had a selective affinity for staining the cells of different organs and tissues. Methyl blue would stain one type of cell, while methyl red stained a different type. In an effort to explain this spec...ificity, Ehrlich hypothesized that cells had molecules that protruded into the surrounding environment, and that a chemical dye fit into these structures, which he called receptors, in the same way that a key fits into a lock.MoreLess
Born in East Prussia in 1854, Ehrlich spent his early years as a scientist researching the use of aniline dyes as biological stains. He and others discovered that the dyes, which were used in the textile industry to color cloth, had a selective affinity for staining the cells of different organs and tissues. Methyl blue would stain one type of cell, while methyl red stained a different type. In an effort to explain this spec...ificity, Ehrlich hypothesized that cells had molecules that protruded into the surrounding environment, and that a chemical dye fit into these structures, which he called receptors, in the same way that a key fits into a lock.MoreLess
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