History
Fluoxetine was created in a joint effort by Bryan Molloy, an organic 
chemist
from Scotland, and David Wong, a neurochemist. Molloy had been working on
ways to improve anti-depressant drugs. The drugs of the day such as Elavil
and Norpramin were “tricyclic” meaning they have 3 carbon rings. Many
of these tricyclic drugs did have some effect on depression, but their side
effects were worse than not being treated. These trcyclics had an impact
on the level of histamine and acetylcholine in the body. Molloy sought to find a
solution to this problem by creating a molecule that did not raise histamine
levels, but was highly specific to a certain neurotransmitter. He began
with the benadryl molecule because of its anti-histamine properties, then began
substituting different groups of atoms into the molecule. Molloy and Wong
eventually met at a lecture by a prominent psychiatrist about neurotransmission.
Wong agreed to test some of the molecules that Molloy had synthesized. He
used what is called the “grind and bind method” in which a rat would be
given the drug, then killed, its brain ground up, then each separate nerve
strand could be
centrifuged out and tested for the uptake of the drug.
After numerous tests, one particular compound was found to have a great capacity
to stop the uptake of Serotonin. This compound was Fluoxetine. Their
results were published in 1974, and 12 years later after numerous clinical
trials, Prozac was released onto the market in 1987.
Since becoming a commercial drug, Prozac has become one of the most controversial
drugs of all time. Because of how little is know about exactly what
serotonin does in the brain, many have argued that it could possibly be doing useable
damage to the brain. Despite this controversy, Prozac is still the most
frequently prescribed anti-depressant medication in the world.
