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Potential Neurotoxicity of Tryptophan
- ANDREW FREESE;
- KENTON J. SCHWARTZ; and
- MATTHEW DURING, M.D.
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Cambridge, MA 02139 Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA 02114
- Boston University School of Medicine; Boston, MA 02118 Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA 02114
- Yale University School of Medicine; New Haven, CT 06510 Massachusetts General Hospital-Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA 02114
Excerpt
To the editor: The precursor relationship of plasma or brain tryptophan levels to the bioactive tryptophan metabolite, serotonin, has been well characterized (1). Indeed, based on this relationship, therapeutic interventions for a number of disorders, including insomnia, depression, obesity, hypertension, and aggression, have been established. Because of media coverage, public self-administration of high doses of tryptophan bought at health food stores is common.
Although tryptophan is a precursor for serotonin biosynthesis, the metabolism of tryptophan is more complex, occurring through a branched pathway. Various studies have shown that increased plasma and brain levels of tryptophan not only augment levels of
