PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

H E Himwich

Publications and source records attributed to H E Himwich.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1975

A test of the transmethylation hypothesis in acute schizophrenic patients.

Keeping biochemical determinations and clinical judgements independent, the authors investigated three aspects of the transmethylation hypothesis. They found that 26 acutely schizophrenic patients were no more likely to have bufotenine or N,N-dimethyltryptamine present in urine or elevated serum indolethylamine N-methyltransferase activity than 10 normal control subjects. The authors conclude that these are naturally occurring substances which are equally likely to be present in normal and schizophrenic subjects.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1975

Biochemical studies in early infantile autism.

In four series of studies on schizophrenic patients and normals we found that all the schizophrenics eliminated N, N-dimethyltryptamines in their urine while none of the normals did so. Similarly, with early infantile autism (Studies I and II) and normal controls, this separation between patiens and normals still held. But ten parents of the five autistic children positive for bufotenin revealed that one or both parents, i.e., seven of ten were positive. The Psychiatric Assessment Interview, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Index, and the Rorschach indicated no significant evidence of psychopathology. Thus, individuals who revealed no psychopathology could still be positive for bufotenin. In studies III and V, 1 of 13 normals and 13 of 27 normals were positive, respectively. Study IV showed that 6 of 18 autistic children were positive for bufotenin.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed1975

Indolethylamine-N-methyltransferase activity in psychiatric patients and controls.

The level of INMT activity was determined in the sera of 29 psychiatric patients and 11 healthy controls from St. Louis; and in 13 psychiatric patients and 15 healthy controls from Chicago. The level of enzyme activity in the serum of paranoid schizophrenics in the St. Louis group was significantly higher than in other types of schizophrenics. The mean level of enzyme activity in the serum in nonschizophrenic psychiatric patients in the Chicago group was significantly higher than that in the same group of patients from St. Louis. The serum level of INMT activity in all psychiatric patients and schizophrenic patients from St. Louis was positively correlated with severity of delusions. The only significant difference in the Chicago patients was that the occurrence of depressive features was greater in the group of patients with a low serum INMT level than in the group with a high enzyme level.

Acute Disease↗