Amen! on using foods rich in dopamine...I am addicted to Smucker's Natural Peanut Butter.

I'm still trying to find a mechanism by which fermentation may work. One possibility is the role played by the enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase.

"In dopaminergic cells in the brain, tyrosine is converted to levodopa by the enzyme tyrosine hydroxylase (TH). TH is the rate-limiting enzyme involved in the synthesis of the neurotransmitter dopamine." [1]

A paper in 2010 by Sato et al states:

"Wheel running by rodents is thought to reflect voluntary exercise in humans. The present study examined the effect of fermented soymilk (FSM) on voluntary wheel running in rats. FSM was prepared from soymilk (SM) using the bacteria Leuconostoc pseudomesenteroides. The rats were fed a normal diet for 3 weeks followed by a 3-week administration of diet containing FSM or SM (5% w/w), and then the diets were switched back to a normal diet for 3 weeks. The voluntary wheel running activity was increased by FSM administration, although no changes were observed by SM administration. This effect was observed 2 weeks after FSM administration and lasted 1 week after deprivation of FSM. ... The protein expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) increased in the hippocampus by FSM administration and it is suggested that FSM may change norepinephrine or dopamine signaling in the brain. Our study provides the first evidence that FSM increases voluntary wheel running activity and sexual behavior and suggests that TH may be involved in these effects." [2]

Wiki states: "Leuconostoc mesenteroides is a species of bacteria sometimes associated with fermentation, under conditions of salinity and low temperatures." [3]

Has anyone tried this?

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrosine
[2] "Fermented soymilk increases voluntary wheel running activity and sexual behavior in male rats"
Takuya Sato, Yasutomo Shinohara, Daisuke Kaneko, Ikuko Nishimura, Asahi Matsuyama
Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 2010, 356) 749-754, 10.1139/H10-069
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21164545
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leuconostoc_mesenteroides

John

In a thread started in 2014 by badboy99 [1], to whom my thanks, the benefits of D-lactic acid are commented on.

For instance, a report from the Max Planck Institute says that D-lactate or glycolate "can stop or even counteract" the process of neuronal death in the substantia nigra. And, "Both glycolic and D-lactic acids occur naturally in unripe fruits and certain kinds of yoghurt." [2]

This raises the question of whether the fermentation done by me and others has been creating D- or L- lactate or a mixture of the two.

Lactic acid is chiral: L and D. That is, it can have versions that are mirror images of each other. And, the important point is that the types can have different effects. (Incidently, it is the same with Dopa, L-Dopa works for PD, D-Dopa doesn't [3]).

The relative amounts of the two types depends on what is being fermented, the bacteria used and the process used. An analysis of various commercial yogurts found D/L ratios ranging from 0.02 to 1.64 [4].

A final point is that high yogurt consumption may contribute to potentially fatal acidosis. However, Vrese and Barth report that [5]:
"the consumption of foods containing D-lactic acid gives no reason for concern in healthy adults."
Whether this applies to PwP, I don't know. I work on the principle that if something can have a large benefit, something very close to it can have a large negative effect.

References

[1] http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...ight=d-lactate

[2]"Potential basis for the treatment and prevention of Parkinson’s disease"
Max Planck Institute, July 2014
http://www.mpg.de/8334548/Parkinson-yoghurt

[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-DOPA

[4] "Dietary Sugars: Chemistry, Analysis, Function and Effects"
ed. Preedy V.

[5] "Postprandial plasma D-lactate concentrations after yogurt ingestion."
de Vrese M1, Barth CA.
Z Ernahrungswiss. 1991 Jun;30(2):131-7.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1897274

John