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Regional Distribution Of 5-Methyltetrahydrofolate Dependent Dopamine-N-Methyl Transferase In Rat Brain And Its Presence In Human Brain, Douglas A. Berv

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Since the introduction of the hypothesis that abnormal transmethylation of biogenic amines may be associated with mental illness, transmethylation processes have been shown to be important in the production of biologically active amine derivatives. Laduron has shown that dopamine can be N-methylated with an enzyme from rat brain that requires 5-methyltetrahydrofolic acid (5MTHF ) as a methyl donor. This study shows that the methylation reaction which produces epinine from dopamine is greatest with supernatant from homogenized caudate lobe as compared to the cerebellum, hippocampus, cortex, and raphe nucleus: the brains of male rats were dissected and homogenized, the supernatant was …