[Salsolinol, 3-O-methyl-dopa and homovanillic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid of Parkinson patients].

Salsolinol is one of the dopamine-derived tetrahydroisoquinolines, supposed to be a potent dopaminergic neurotoxin, similar to MPTP. Its systemic administration induced parkinsonism in monkeys. The aim of the study was to compare the concentration of salsolinol and the metabolite of L-dopa, 3-O-MD, and the metabolite of dopamine, HVA, in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with different degrees of parkinsonism, treated or nontreated with l-dopa. Lumbar CSF was obtained from 26 patients with Parkinson's disease (15 early and 11 advanced parkinsonism) and from six healthy controls. The presence of salsolinol, HVA and 3-O-MD was assayed with a sensitive HPLC method employing C18 (Hypersil BDS) column. The analysis of the results demonstrated that the concentration of salsolinol was related to the degree of parkinsonism but not affected by l-dopa treatment. In contrast, HVA and 3-O-MD were significantly elevated in patients receiving l-dopa but did not correlate with the severity of parkinsonism. The results suggest that salsolinol in the cerebrospinal fluid does not originate from exogenous l-dopa and its elevation in cerebrospinal fluid may be an indicator of the advancement of parkinsonism.