So, I've been researching the relationship between Kynurenic Acid (KYNA) and L-Tryptophan, as well as the NMDA-antagonistic effects of KYNA.
My interest began as I have a hypothesis that a majority of ADHD -sufferers appear to have an overly active NMDA-network, which would account for the many secondary diagnoses that we have - such as DCD, Dyscalculia, MDD, etc.
My hypothesis was boosted by the growing section of ADHD-ers that see relief from Memantine - a non-competitive NMDA-antagonist - as well as from my initial foray into Schizophrenia -research, where I found many of the biological characteristics of Schizophrenia to be INVERTED from ADHD -
- High Dopamine
- Low NMDA activity
- High KYNA
And lo' and behold... when I researched the same mechanisms among ADHD -ers, a seeming pattern emerged! There really does seem to be something to this, since it ties together so many things, quite neatly.
- Memantine alleviates ADHD ( Nitromemantine is believed to be even better)
- Ketogenic diet alleviates ADHD for some patients
- ADHD -ers have lower levels of KYNA than neurotypicals
- ADHD -ers have lower levels of L-Tryptophan than neurotypicals
- Circadian rhytm dysfunction is a common ADHD symptom, and Melatonin is synthesized from L-tryptophan
This gives me the hunch that inhibition of the NMDA -network is essential for treating ADHD, and the reason why is because we have some kind of problem with our L-tryptophan processing, as KYNA is produced from Tryptophan.
As such:
Tryptophan -> KYNA
-> Melatonin
-> 5-HTP -> Serotonin
Now... what do you fellas reckon' about this hypothesis? How does one go about increasing KYNA, WITHOUT increasing Serotonin? My main idea at the moment was to utilize a combo of L-tryptophan supplementation with Tianeptine - so as to clear out Serotonin, while still receiving higher KYNA -production, and possibly receiving even more NMDA -antagonism from the potential NMDA -interaction of Tianeptine! ^^
However, turns out Tianeptine probably doesn't truly increase Serotonin reuptake... So, there goes another great idea in the trash-can.
So, any ideas lads? How do I increase my KYNA -production, while at the same time NOT increasing Serotonin-production?
Here is a list of the articles which inspired this hypothesis:
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Brains of Children with ADHD Show Protein Deficiency | Psych Central