[Methylated and unmethylated indolamine in the cisternal fluid in acute endogenous psychoses]

Tryptamine (Try), 5-methoxytryptamine (5MeOT), N-methyltryptamine (N-Met), 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5MeODMT) and N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) are metabolites of the neurotransmitter 5-hydroxytryptamine (5HT). The cisternal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is probably a suitable biological material for investigating the problem of indolamine metabolism in schizophrenic patients. As part of a biological research programme on schizophrenia we have investigated concentrations of cisternal CSF indolamines in a group of acute paranoid patients in comparison with psychiatrically healthy controls. The concentrations of indolamines in the cisternal CSF reveal that psychotomimetic indolamines like 5MeODMT, 5MeOT and DMT and the indolamines N-Met and Try are present in psychological and pathological states. The patients suffering from acute paranoid schizophrenia have high or very high levels of the investigated indolamines in comparison with healthy controls, but there are significant individual differences in the group of these patients. The search for correlations between the level of a single indolamine and individual psychopathological symptoms could provide more specific information for diagnosis or treatment.