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Hello Brenda, at 17 Feb 96 you wrote the following in the newsgroup Archiv.Parkinson about _Turkey_: >In the February issue of Reader's Digest there was an article titled ><Foods that Boost Your Moods> which was condensed from Ladies Home >Journal. On page 42, under the heading <Turkey> the article says: >(begin quote) > This low-fat protein source is rich in an amino acid called > tyrosine, which boosts levels of the brain chemicals dopamine > and Noreprinephrine, and in turn improves motivation and > reaction time. U.S. military research has indicated that > tyrosine lifts energy levels and helps the body to cope > better with stress. > [...] Theoretically, this statement is true, the organism uses L-Tyrosine to produce L-DOPA (similarily, another neurotransmitter, serotonine is produced from the aminoacid L-Tryptophane). But in PD this mechanism may be impaired. One theory on the lack of dopamine (produced in the brain from L-DOPA) in PD, based on lab. findings in PD patients' brains, says that there is a lack of one of the enzymes producing L-DOPA from L- Tyrosine which is called thyrosine hydroxylase. According to this theory, the PD brain would not be able to produce enough L-DOPA from the surplus of L-Tyrosine. Ciao Stephan Blaschke