Medicaments for facilitating methyl transfer to catechols - contg. purified catechol O-methyltransferase enzyme

摘要

Medicaments which facilitate the transfer of methyl gps. from a donor (esp. S-adenosyl-methionine, SAM) to o-diphenolic and ene-diolic groupings (esp. in catecholamines) contain purified catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) with a mol. wt. of the order of 50,000. The medicaments can be used, opt. in combination with SAM, to treat disorders associated with abnormally high catecholamine levels, e.g. hepatic dysmetabolism leading to adrenaline- or moradrenaline-induced hypertension, excessive dopamine release due to brain disorders, etc.