A test of the transmethylation hypothesis in acute schizophrenic patients.
W T Carpenter, E B Fink, N Narasimhachari, H E Himwich
The American journal of psychiatry October 1, 1975 DOI: 10.1176/ajp.132.10.1067 via PubMed
Summary
Acutely schizophrenic patients and healthy individuals are equally likely to have the compounds bufotenine and N,N-dimethyltryptamine in their urine, and show similar levels of a related enzyme in their blood. The findings suggest these substances occur naturally in both groups and do not support the transmethylation hypothesis of schizophrenia.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Case-control study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 36 |
| Population | 26 acutely schizophrenic patients and 10 normal control subjects |
| Citations | 31 |
| Key finding | Acutely schizophrenic patients were no more likely than normal controls to have bufotenine or N,N-dimethyltryptamine in urine or elevated serum indolethylamine N-methyltransferase activity. |
Abstract
Keeping biochemical determinations and clinical judgements independent, the authors investigated three aspects of the transmethylation hypothesis. They found that 26 acutely schizophrenic patients were no more likely to have bufotenine or N,N-dimethyltryptamine present in urine or elevated serum indolethylamine N-methyltransferase activity than 10 normal control subjects. The authors conclude that these are naturally occurring substances which are equally likely to be present in normal and schizophrenic subjects.