The Journal of Brief Ideas

By JOHN STEWART

Further to NPBR .1. and Journal of Brief Ideas papers on "Oxidative stress, MAOIs and OCD" and "OCD, St John's Wort and Iron", this paper concerns TRPA1 human gut receptors which respond to oxidative stress. The 1,2,3- and 1,2,4- benzenetriols are responsible for much of the gut release from coffee of radicals which act at TRPA1 receptors, resulting in serotonin release. However, a number of natural products are strong agonists at TRPA1 receptors notably cinnamaldehyde. On St John's Wort,(5 x 333mg whole herb equivalent per day),as on MAOIs, adding cinnamaldehyde produces the same post-serotonin release patterns (e.g alternating auricle high blood flow) observed when taking new batches of serotonin releasing coffees (the 1,2,4 benzenetriol is quickly oxidized in air to an inactive, insoluble form). Small true cinnamon bark quills have been found to work best,(cinnamaldehyde is quickly oxidized to TRPA1-inactive cinnamic acid in the human stomach), and daily cinnamaldehyde addition this way to St John's Wort has improved the OCD cure. The cinnamaldehyde TRPA1 agonist effect adds to the peripheral serotonin release which alters vagal systems, likely resulting in a resetting of the brain's default mode system, which is influenced by vagal stimulation via, significantly, the auricle .2., in treatment for depression, for example.