ABSTRACT
Normal males received amino acid mixtures designed to raise or lower tryptophan availability, and thus to raise or lower brain serotonin synthesis. They also received alcoholic or non-alcoholic drinks. The subjects were tested in the Taylor Competitive Reaction Time Task in which they competed against a (non-existent) partner in a reaction time task. The magnitude of electric shocks that the subjects were willing to give to their bogus partner was used as a measure of aggression. Lowered tryptophan levels and ingestion of alcohol were associated with increased aggression. Our data support the idea that low serotonin levels may be involved in the etiology of aggression. They suggest that subjects with low brain serotonin levels may be particularly susceptible to alcohol-induced violence.
Subject(s)
Aggression , Ethanol/pharmacology , Tryptophan/pharmacology , Adolescent , Adult , Electroshock , Humans , Male , Reaction Time , Serotonin/metabolismABSTRACT
We describe a 3rd patient with limited cutaneous systemic sclerosis (ISSc) complicated by a pericardial effusion sufficient to cause hemodynamic compromise. Although more commonly appreciated as a complication of diffuse systemic sclerosis, the recognition of hemodynamically compromising pericardial effusion presenting in the limited form of ISSc can be lifesaving.
Subject(s)
CREST Syndrome/complications , Pericardial Effusion/etiology , CREST Syndrome/pathology , Echocardiography , Female , Humans , Middle Aged , Pericardial Effusion/diagnostic imagingSubject(s)
Colchicine/therapeutic use , Neutrophils/pathology , Vasculitis/drug therapy , Adult , Female , Humans , Vasculitis/pathologyABSTRACT
To study the effects of tryptophan on alcohol selection the tryptophan levels in subjects were altered through the administration of amino acid mixtures. Male social drinkers (N = 45) with no psychiatric or medical problems were divided into three groups and consumed a drink that contained, respectively, a nutritionally balanced amino acid mixture, a tryptophan-supplemented mixture, or a tryptophan-free mixture. After a waiting period of 5 hours, blood samples were taken and subjects participated in an ad-lib taste rating of six--one nonalcoholic and five alcoholic--beverages. Water was also made available to subjects. Although there was a marked effect on total and free plasma tryptophan levels showing a dramatic increase in the case of the tryptophan-supplemented group and a decrease in the tryptophan-free group, altered tryptophan levels did not influence the amount of alcohol subjects ingested. Tryptophan supplementation was found to decrease water intake significantly by an unknown mechanism without affecting alcohol selection.