Effects of tranylcypromine treatment on neuroendocrine, behavioral, and autonomic responses to tryptophan in depressed patients.

Effects of intravenous administration of the serotonin precursor tryptophan (TRP) on serum prolactin, neuromotor function, subjective mood, and blood pressure and pulse were determined in nine depressed patients before and during placebo-controlled treatment with the monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) tranylcypromine. Tranylcypromine significantly increased the prolactin response to TRP. Four patients developed a distinctive neuromotor syndrome following TRP during tranylcypromine, but not placebo, treatment. Symptoms included hyperreflexia, ankle clonus, nystagmus, incoordination, tremor, myoclonic jerks, and nausea. There were no differences in peak prolactin, mood, or autonomic responses between patients with and without the syndrome, but those with the syndrome had received active tranylcypromine for a significantly shorter duration. Tranylcypromine had little effect on TRP-induced changes in mood or autonomic function, except for a modest enhancement of the TRP-induced rise in diastolic blood pressure. These results suggest that tranylcypromine treatment may enhance serotonin function in depression.