Isolation of -L-glutaminyl 4-hydroxybenzene and -L-glutaminyl 3,4-benzoquinone: a natural sulfhydryl reagent, from sporulating gill tissue of the mushroom Agaricus bisporus

Early in the development of spores, there appears in gill tissue of the mushroom Agaricus bisporus a red pigment that inhibits mitochondrial respiration. The inhibitor and its immediate precursor were isolated from the mushroom and identified as gamma-L-glutaminyl 3,4-benzoquinone (I) and gamma-L-glutaminyl 4-hydroxybenzene (II), respectively, neither of which had previously been described. II was synthesized chemically and the synthetic material was identical with isolated II in all regards. An enzyme that oxidizes II to I was isolated concurrently. I reacts unusually rapidly, completely, and at low concentration with the sulfhydryl groups of various mitochondrial enzymes, accounting for its originally observed properties. It may also prove of value as a general inhibitor of sulfhydryl-dependent enzymes.

The offspring of schizophrenic couples

Previous studies of the psychiatric fate of children with two schizophrenic parents were summarized. The morbid expectancy rate was estimated to be about 35 per cent. An hypothesis of benign modifying genes to explain the low expectancy was examined but failed to find support. The possibility that the hypothesized schizophrenic gene in double dose might lead to increased perinatal mortality was considered, but the relevant data suggest that noxious influences on the fetus, caused by schizophrenic concomitants in the mother during pregnancy, were more probable contributors to the perinatal mortality.