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The effect of age on concentrations of monoamines, amino acids, and their related substances in the cerebrospinal fluid

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Journal of Neural Transmission - Parkinson's Disease and Dementia Section

Summary

We studied age-related changes in the concentrations of monoamines, amino acids, and their related substances in the cerebrospinal fluid on 144 neurologically normal subjects. The concentrations of tyrosine, 3-O-methyldopa, dopamine (total), norepinephrine (total), homovanillic acid, p-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, and 5-hydroxytryptophan increased significantly with age (p<0.05), and the concentration of 3.4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid displayed a non-significant trend to decrease, whereas concentrations of other monoamine precursors and metabolites were unchanged. We found the significant positive correlations between the concentrations of HVA and 5-HIAA (p<0.001), between tyrosine and tryptophan (p<0.001), and between tyrosine and 3-O-methyldopa (p<0.001). The concentrations of asparagine, glycine, taurine, and alanine increased significantly with age (p<0.05), while glutamine, arginine, and threonine concentrations did not change with age. The aspartate, glutamate, and GABA concentrations displayed the non-significant trends to decrease in the elderly subjects. The concentrations of aspartate, glutamate, and GABA had mutually significant positive correlations (p<0.05), but had significant negative correlations with the concentrations of some neutral amino acids. The urate and xanthine concentrations increased significantly with age (p<0.01). These findings suggest that the concentrations of monoamine and amino acid transmitters and their related compounds in the cerebrospinal fluid reflect age-related changes in the synthesis, release, and reuptake mechanisms of the transmitters and their transport mechanisms across the blood-brain barrier.

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  1. H. Tohgi

    Present address: Department of Neurology, Iwate Medical University, 19-1 Uchimaru, 020, Morioka, Japan

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  1. Department of Neurology, Iwate Medical University, 19-1 Uchimaru, 020, Morioka, Japan

    S. Takahashi & T. Abe

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  1. H. Tohgi
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  2. S. Takahashi
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  3. T. Abe
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Tohgi, H., Takahashi, S. & Abe, T. The effect of age on concentrations of monoamines, amino acids, and their related substances in the cerebrospinal fluid. J Neural Transm Gen Sect 5, 215–226 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02257676

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02257676

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