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Science 7 January 1972:
Vol. 175. no. 4017, pp. 69 - 71
DOI: 10.1126/science.175.4017.69
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Articles

Isovaleric and agr-Methylbutyric Acidemias Induced by Hypoglycin A: Mechanism of Jamaican Vomiting Sickness

Kay Tanaka 1, Kurt J. Isselbacher 1, and Vivian Shih 2

1 Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital (Gastrointestinal Unit), and Harvard Medical School, Boston 02114
2 Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, and Joseph P. Kennedy Laboratories, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston 02114

Hypoglycin A, the causative agent of the Jamaican vomiting sickness, produced a marked increase in concentration of isovaleric acid in the plasma of rats, when administered in a single dose. agr-Methylbutyric acid, a position isomer, also accumulated. The use of hypoglycin A reproduced some features of human isovaleric acidemia. Accumulation of these branched pentanoic acids may be another factor contributing to the pathogenesis of the Jamaican vomiting sickness.


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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)