Branchey L, Branchey M, Shaw S, Lieber C S
Am J Psychiatry. 1984 Oct;141(10):1212-5. doi: 10.1176/ajp.141.10.1212.
The authors studied the relationship between changes in amino acid precursors of biogenic amines and depression in 42 alcoholic patients with a secondary depression. Tryptophan and amino acids competing with it for brain entry were measured in the plasma of depressed alcoholics, nondepressed alcoholics, and control subjects. The ratio of tryptophan to its competitors was significantly lower in depressed patients than in nondepressed patients and controls. The decreased ratio was due primarily to decreased tryptophan and increased tyrosine and phenylalanine values. A decreased tryptophan ratio is known to result in decreased brain tryptophan and may contribute to depression through a deficiency of brain serotonin.
作者研究了42例患有继发性抑郁症的酗酒患者体内生物胺氨基酸前体变化与抑郁症之间的关系。对抑郁酗酒者、非抑郁酗酒者和对照受试者的血浆中的色氨酸以及与其竞争进入大脑的氨基酸进行了测量。与非抑郁患者和对照相比，抑郁患者色氨酸与其竞争物的比例显著降低。该比例降低主要是由于色氨酸减少以及酪氨酸和苯丙氨酸值增加。已知色氨酸比例降低会导致大脑色氨酸减少，并可能通过脑血清素缺乏导致抑郁症。
