Abstract
BUFOTENIN (Fig. 1), an indole compound first found in the glandular secretion of certain toad species, has been reported to produce psychotic episodes in physically and mentally healthy individuals1. Interest has been focused on this compound in the study of biochemical aspects of schizophrenia because of the possible formation of bufotenin in mammalian tissues from the naturally occurring neurohormone serotonin2,3. A bufotenin-like compound has been reported in the urine of schizophrenic patients4–6. Unfortunately, these findings have not been generally accepted because of some defects in the detection methods employed7,8. Others7,9–15 have failed to confirm the presence of bufotenin in the urine of schizophrenics as well as non-schizophrenic individuals.
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TANIMUKAI, H., GINTHER, R., SPAIDE, J. et al. Psychotomimetic Indole Compound in the Urine of Schizophrenics and Mentally Defective Patients. Nature 216, 490–491 (1967). https://doi.org/10.1038/216490a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/216490a0
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