부산대학교 도서관

A disorder in the processing of the neurotransmitter dopamine may explain some of the neurological and behavioral aspects of Lesch-Nyhan disease. Lesch-Nyhan disease is a genetic disease characterized by abnormalities in purine metabolism. Researchers used positron-emission tomography (PET) and a labelled chemical similar to the chemical dopa to study the metabolism of dopamine in 12 patients with Lesch-Nyhan disease and 15 healthy volunteers. The labelled chemical was infused intravenously and converted in the brain to labelled dopamine. PET scans showed that the patients with Lesch-Nyhan disease had less labelled dopamine than the healthy participants. This decrease in activity occurred in all of the major areas of the brain that use dopamine. The drop in dopamine activity in these patients resembles that seen in Parkinson's patients but anti-Parkinson's drugs have not been effective in Lesch-Nyhan disease.