Serum Amino Acid Profiles and Dopamine in Schizophrenic Patients and Healthy Subjects: Window to the Brain?

Overview

Journal Amino Acids

Specialty Biochemistry

Date 2013 Nov 7

PMID 24194278

Citations 1

Authors

M L Rao

B Strebel

G Gross

G Huber

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Altered dopamine turnover has been postulated as underlying cause for schizophrenia. This is partially inferred from pharmacological studies and from changes in serum dopamine and dopamine metabolite levels. It is not clear whether the serum amino acid precursors' availability and neurotransmitter-mediated hormonal release could be indicative of the neurotransmitter turnover. We speculate in this context that the profile of serum amino acids and neurotransmitters reflects differences of neurotransmitter activity in the central nervous system and may be considered in a broad sense "window to the brain".We analyzed basal serum amino acids (including monoamine precursors), and monoamines in schizophrenic patients after a drug holiday of 3 or more days, and in healthy subjects.Asparagine, phenylalanine, and cystine were higher and tyrosine, tryptophan, and the ratio of tryptophan to competing amino acids lower in schizophrenic patients than in healthy subjects (P < 0.05). Dopamine was increased in schizophrenic patients compared to healthy subjects.We speculate that these results sustain the notion for dopamine overactivity in schizophrenia, which might be caused by altered amino acid precursor availability.

Citing Articles

Asparagine reduces the risk of schizophrenia: a bidirectional two-sample mendelian randomization study of aspartate, asparagine and schizophrenia.

Liu H, Gao Y, Xu D, Du X, Wei S, Hu J BMC Psychiatry. 2024; 24(1):299.

PMID: 38641826 PMC: 11027219. DOI: 10.1186/s12888-024-05765-5.

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