What Is the Blood-Brain Barrier
Reviewed: Dr. Gromatzky
3. Paul Ehrlich
Dyes are often used in medical scenarios to help researchers and medical professionals to see what is happening in the body. It was through using dyes that we were able to discover the blood-brain barrier, and the discovery was made almost by accident.
It was in 1885 that Paul Ehrlich, a German scientist, was experimenting with mice. He injected a blue dye into mice and noticed that the dye made their organs turn blue, except for their brains. In a later experience, blue due was injected into the brains of mice and this time, only the brain turned blue. This hinted strongly that the blood-brain barrier existed, but there was no way to confirm it at the time.
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