PEDIATRICS Vol. 15 No. 1 January 1955, pp. 63-66
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Dancis, J.
Right arrow Articles by Balis, M. E.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Dancis, J.
Right arrow Articles by Balis, M. E.

A POSSIBLE MECHANISM FOR DISTURBANCE IN TYROSINE METABOLISM IN PHENYLPYRUVIC OLIGOPHRENIA

Joseph Dancis 1 and M. Earl Balis 2

1 The Laboratories of the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research, New York, New York., Fellow of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis.
2 The Laboratories of the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research, New York, New York.

1. In vitro, L-phenylalanine partially inhibits the action of tyrosinase on tyrosine. The amount of inhibition is directly related to the concentration of L-phenylalanine.

2. In the same concentration, D-phenylalanine produces no significant effect on the tyrosine-tyrosinase system. Parallel experiments with DL-alanine also indicate a specific effect by L-phenylalanine.

3. It is suggested that, because of the similarity in structure, L-phenylalanine competes with tyrosine for the enzyme tyrosinase.

4. The significance of these findings in phenylpyruvic oligophrenia is discussed.