title: Salsolinol, catecholamine metabolites, and visual hallucinations in L-dopa treated patients with Parkinson's disease.
abstract: We could quantify the tetrahydroisoquinoline derivative salsolinol in urine of patients with Parkinson's disease and normal control subjects by means of high performance liquid chromatography and electrochemical detection. Urine levels of salsolinol were positively related to the homovanillic acid/3-O-methyl-dopa ratio in the cerebrospinal fluid that reflects dopamine metabolism. In the patient group with visual hallucinations, mean salsolinol level was significantly increased to almost the 3-fold of those found in patients without hallucinations. Since the daily L-dopa doses of both patient groups were nearly identical this result is not due to different L-dopa medications. Additionally, either high values of the main serotonin metabolite, 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (HIAA) or the L-dopa/3-O-methyl-dopa ratio were found in cerebrospinal fluid of patients with hallucinations. The enhanced salsolinol levels in patients with visual hallucinations seem to be due to an overloaded dopaminergic pathway with an imbalance between dopaminergic and serotonergic systems. Thus, salsolinol appears as a predictor for hallucinosis in Parkinson's disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Medical University, Lübeck, Federal Republic of Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moser
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Siebecker
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vieregge
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jaskowski
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kömpf
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000978:Antiparkinson Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000652:urine; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D005260:Female; D006212:Hallucinations / Q000150:complications* / Q000652:urine; D006719:Homovanillic Acid / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D006801:Humans; D006897:Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D007546:Isoquinolines / Q000652:urine*; D007980:Levodopa / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000523:psychology*; D012016:Reference Values; D012044:Regression Analysis; D014443:Tyrosine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid
chemical_list: D000978:Antiparkinson Agents; D015415:Biomarkers; D002395:Catecholamines; D007546:Isoquinolines; D014443:Tyrosine; D007980:Levodopa; D006897:Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid; C036617:salsolinol; C008404:3-methoxytyrosine; D006719:Homovanillic Acid