The Biochemistry of Mental Diseases

"For every drug that benefits a patient, there is a natural substance that can achieve the same effect." - Pfeiffer's Law

Carl C. Pfeiffer, M.D., Ph.D.

1908-1988

Introduction

A number of reports (see the references) have implicated tryptophan in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other mental diseases. Tryptophan is in protein. Vegetarians and particularly vegans eat less protein than omnivorous people, but they still get protein, which is in beans, grains, nuts, seeds, and vegetables. Fruits have less protein.

Neuropathology Reflects Biochemical Errors

There have been hundreds of reports of positive neuropathology findings in schizophrenia, "dementia praecox", and other mental diseases. I treat schizophrenia and the older term "dementia praecox" as being the same thing.

Klippel & Lhermitte (1904-1909)

These French scientists reported many positive findings. Pathology was seen in deep cortical areas. There was disappearance of Nissl bodies, a finding later confirmed by Roizin (1952), the Vogts, and others. This would be explained if amino acids were flooding the cells.

Lipid deposits appeared in the cytoplasm. This is consistent with work by Alzheimer (1897, 1900, 1913), Cotton, Southard, the Vogts, Averback (1981a, 1981b), and others. This finding would also be explained in amino acids were flooding the cells.

Abnormal Platelets

Xalabarder (1973) reported abnormal thrombocytes (platelets). This report was in Spanish.

Bonartsev (1976)

This Russian scientist found that the lymphocytes of schizophrenics were "activated". They were "wide cytoplasmic", meaning a large cytoplasm. The fact that Bonartsev reported the cells as being "activated" means that the synthetic apparatus (the rough endoplasmic reticulum, formerly called the Nissl bodies) was forming proteins from amino acids. All of these findings would be explained if amino acids were flooding the cells.

Tryptophan

Tryptophan is an amino acid. It is in barley, brown rice, cottage cheese, fish, shellfish, crab, meats, milk, peanuts, soybeans, etc. My theory is that a low tryptophan diet might help. These foods are to be avoided.

Flavonoids

Flavonoids may be helpful. These are in the pulp and rind of citrus fruits, green pepper, apricots, cherries, grapes, papaya, tomatos, broccoli, tea, etc. According to H. Winter Griffith (1998), they "may decrease cholesterol levels". My own theory is that they inhibit COMT, an enzyme that creates a toxin called DMPEA from dopamine. This toxin is only found in schizophrenics and the peyote cactus.

Also Griffith wrote that they "may prevent hemorrhoids" in his book.

The general rule is that flavonids are in plant foods, particularly fruits, berries, and vegetables. They are thought to fight colds and infections. They are considered to prevent excessive inflammation throughout your body.

Conclusions

There have been positive neuropathology findings in schizophrenia by a large number of authors including Baumer and von Buttlar-Brentano of Germany. Clearly schizophrenia is organic. The difficult task is to make sense out of the myriad of data. Schizophrenia is a metabolic disease. The consistent finding of gliosis signifies that an unknown toxic factor is at work.

Findings by Friedhoff and others (see the references) indicate that the unknown toxin is DMPEA.

My own theory is that nutrition should be used to correct the chemical errors. This is easier said than done, but some suggestions have been made.

References

1. Plasma homocysteine levels in young male patients in the exacerbation and remission phase of schizophrenia.

Petronijeviæ ND, Radonjiæ NV, Ivkoviæ MD, Marinkoviæ D, Piperski VD, Duriciæ BM, Paunoviæ VR.

Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2008 Dec 12;32(8):1921-6. Epub 2008 Sep 15.

2. Biomarker discovery in psychiatric disorders.

Schwarz E, Bahn S.

Electrophoresis. 2008 Jul;29(13):2884-90. Review.

3. Psychiatric research: psychoproteomics, degradomics and systems biology.

Kobeissy FH, Sadasivan S, Liu J, Gold MS, Wang KK.

Expert Rev Proteomics. 2008 Apr;5(2):293-314. Review.

4. Kynurenine pathway in psychosis: evidence of increased tryptophan degradation.

Barry S, Clarke G, Scully P, Dinan TG.

J Psychopharmacol. 2008 Jun 18. [Epub ahead of print]

5. Alterations in kynurenine precursor and product levels in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Miller CL, Llenos IC, Cwik M, Walkup J, Weis S.

Neurochem Int. 2008 May;52(6):1297-303. Epub 2008 Feb 2.

6. Upregulation of the initiating step of the kynurenine pathway in postmortem anterior cingulate cortex from individuals with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Miller CL, Llenos IC, Dulay JR, Weis S.

Brain Res. 2006 Feb 16;1073-1074:25-37. Epub 2006 Jan 30.

7. Dimethoxyphenylethylamine and tetrahydropapaverine are toxic to the nigrostriatal system.

Koshimura I, Imai H, Hidano T, Endo K, Mochizuki H, Kondo T, Mizuno Y.

Brain Res. 1997 Oct 31;773(1-2):108-16.

8. Neurotoxic effects of papaverine, tetrahydropapaverine and dimethoxyphenylethylamine on dopaminergic neurons in ventral mesencephalic-striatal co-culture.

Goto K, Mochizuki H, Hattori T, Nakamura N, Mizuno Y.

Brain Res. 1997 Apr 18;754(1-2):260-8.

9. Projection of an endocoid involved with schizophrenic reaction.

Proctor CD, Cho JB, Nicolls AA.

Prog Clin Biol Res. 1985;192:387-93.

10. DMPEA in schizophrenia.

Schweitzert JW, Friedhoff AJ.

Biol Psychiatry. 1982 Mar;17(3):400-1. No abstract available.

11. Excretion of 3,4-dimethoxyphenethylamine (DMPEA) by acute schizophrenics and controls.

Friedhoff AJ, Park S, Schweitzer JW, Burdock EI, Armour M.

Biol Psychiatry. 1977 Oct;12(5):643-54. No abstract available.

12. Facilitation and disruption by mescaline and 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine of shock avoidance in rats.

Gorelick DA, Bridger WH.

Psychopharmacology (Berl). 1977 Apr 29;52(2):157-63.

13. [Psychomimetic compounds in the urine of schizophrenics. I. Study of catechol derivatives: so-called Pink Spot and 3.4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine (DMPEA)]

Willmann PK, Bidziñski A, Jakimow B, Puzyñski S.

Psychiatr Pol. 1977 Mar-Apr;11(2):143-9. Polish. No abstract available.

14. [Excretion of 3,4-dimethoxy phenylethylamine in the urine of schizophrenics]

Zimmermann K, Moschke P, Wieder KH.

Psychiatr Neurol Med Psychol (Leipz). 1976 Mar;28(3):163-73. German.

15. [Biogenic amines and schizophrenia]

Schöpf J.

Schweiz Med Wochenschr. 1975 Sep 20;105(38):1201-9. German.

16. Potentiation by 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine (DMPEA) and cocaine of norepinephrine-induced contraction of guinea-pig vas deferens.

Shah NS, Patel SR, Gulati OD.

J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1974 Aug;190(2):227-33. No abstract available.

17. [Determination and occurrence of 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine (DMPEA) in the urine of acute schizophrenics (author's transl)]

Braun G, Kalbhen DA, Müller J, Vahar-Matiar H.

Arch Psychiatr Nervenkr. 1974 Mar 4;218(3):195-210. German. No abstract available.

18. Biosynthesis of DMPEA and its metabolites in mammalian tissues.

Friedhoff AJ.

Biol Psychiatry. 1973 Apr;6(2):187-91.

19. A new concept and further support for the importance and occurrence of 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine (DMPEA) in urine of schizophrenic patients.

Kalbhen DA, Braun G.

Pharmacology. 1973;9(1):52-6.

20. Co-crystallization analysis: a short method for identification and quantitative determination of DMPEA and other biological compounds.

Friedhoff AJ.

Biol Psychiatry. 1972 Oct;5(2):199-206.

21. Effect of the administration of tea on the excretion of DMPEA.

Friedhoff AJ, Meller E, Schweitzer JW.

Am J Psychiatry. 1972 Mar;128(9):1149-53.

22. Pink spot and DMPEA.

Ridges AP.

Am J Psychiatry. 1971 Jul;128(1):122-3.