Posted by Larry Hoover on October 20, 2002, at 22:44:10
In reply to Re: you were right, any studies, which supplement?, posted by BobS. on October 20, 2002, at 18:12:37
> I did a medline search and found nothing about the AD effect of phenylalanine. Where did you, or anyone, get info on it? Also, what protein supplement are you referring to? What is the mechanism of action of phenylalanine?
>
> Thanks for your help.
> BobS.There are actually a number of references to phenylalanine intake and mood in Medline. I don't know why you didn't find any. The advantage of phenylalanine supplementation over taking tyrosine is that phenylalanine is also a precursor to phenylethylamine (PEA), which is a mood elvating chemical in its own right.
J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci 1995 Winter;7(1):6-14
Phenylethylamine modulation of affect: therapeutic and diagnostic implications.
Sabelli HC, Javaid JI.
Department of Psychiatry, Rush Medical Center, Chicago, IL 60612, USA.
A review of the literature indicates that brain phenylethylamine (PEA) may be a neuromodulator of aminergic synapses and that it promotes energy, elevates mood, and favors aggression. Phenylacetic acid, the main metabolite of PEA, is decreased in the biological fluids of depressed subjects and schizophrenic subjects and is increased in schizoaffective subjects. The administration of PEA or of its precursor L-phenylalanine improves mood in depressed patients treated with a selective monoamine oxidase B inhibitor. The authors speculate that studies of PEA metabolism may have diagnostic value and that PEA administration may be therapeutic in selected depressed patients.
J Clin Psychiatry 1986 Feb;47(2):66-70Clinical studies on the phenylethylamine hypothesis of affective disorder: urine and blood phenylacetic acid and phenylalanine dietary supplements.
Sabelli HC, Fawcett J, Gusovsky F, Javaid JI, Wynn P, Edwards J, Jeffriess H, Kravitz H.
To test the hypothesis that 2-phenylethylamine (PEA) modulates affect, plasma levels and urinary excretion of its main metabolite, phenylacetic acid (PAA), were studied in depressed and manic subjects, and the mood-elevating effects of its precursor, L-phenylalanine, were studied in depressed subjects. Mean total plasma PAA concentrations were 491.83 +/- 232.84 ng/ml in 12 healthy volunteers and 300.33 +/- 197.44 ng/ml in 23 drug-free patients with major depression. The 24-hour urinary PAA excretion was also measured in 48 healthy volunteers (141.1 +/- 10.2 mg PAA/24 hr) and in 144 patients with major depression (78.2 +/- 41.0 mg PAA/24 hr). The results suggest that low plasma and urinary PAA may be state markers for depression and are compatible with the PEA hypothesis. In further support, phenylalanine elevated mood in 31 of 40 depressives.
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:124204
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20021019/msgs/124457.html