An important focus of research on hexachlorophene and other mitochondrial neurotoxins is the search for drugs that block their lasting toxic effects. In both animal and human studies, drugs that affect a specific type of glutamate receptor affect the myelin in the brain.

In animal studies, these types of drugs block hexachophene's toxic effect. One of these drugs, NBQX, was effective in animals as a blocker of myelin damage. It is itself, however, toxic in humans.

With Brain Imaging of myelin the usefullness of similar drugs in humans could be assessed.

In those who were exposed to hexachlorophene as babies, drugs that would have blocked its toxic effects on the myelin then might also be of value now.