Summary
We have recently described an association between abnormal behaviour and monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) deficiency in several males from a single large Dutch kindred. A characteristically abnormal excretion pattern of biogenic amine metabolites was present in 24-hour urine of affected males. Because of this strikingly abnormal metabolite pattern observed in 24 hour urine samples of MAO-A deficient males we hypothesized that it should be possible to diagnose this condition by examining random urine samples. We therefore studied multiple urine samples obtained over a two-week study period from two males with selective MAO-A deficiency. The results demonstrate that the characteristic abnormalities in the excretion of biogenic amines and their metabolites were faithfully present in every one of 12 independent samples obtained from the MAO-A deficient males over the two-week study period. We conclude that MAO-A deficiency can be reliably diagnosed by measuring the ratio of normetanephrine (NMN) to VMA (or that of NMN to MHPG) in random urine samples.
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References
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© 1998 Springer-Verlag Wien
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Abeling, N.G.G.M., van Gennip, A.H., van Cruchten, A.G., Overmars, H., Brunner, H.G. (1998). Monoamine oxidase A deficiency: Biogenic amine metabolites in random urine samples. In: Finberg, J.P.M., Youdim, M.B.H., Riederer, P., Tipton, K.F. (eds) MAO — The Mother of all Amine Oxidases. Journal of Neural Transmission. Supplement, vol 52. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-6499-0_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-7091-6499-0_2
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