The Investigation of Homovanillic Acid in the Human Brain and its Correlation to Senile Dementia

Abstract

In a previous investigation, the concentration of homovanillic acid (HVA) seemed to be related to the degree of dementia (Gottfries et al. , 1965). The object of the present work is the further study of the occurrence of HVA in the human brain, especially with regard to senile dementia. The hypothesis is that senile dementia is a disease with a disturbance in the monoamine metabolism, which is reflected in a reduction of HVA in the neostriatum.