February 3, 1969

Dr. Thomas L. Perry

Department of Pharmacology

Faculty of Medicine

University of British Columbia

Vancouver 8, Canada

Dear Tom:

Thanks very much for your letter.

I was pretty skeptical about Hoffer's mauve spot, and I asked you about it on the off chance that you had a different opinion.

I have looked over my paper in the effort to discover what gave you the idea that I thought that there was a single cause of schizophrenia. In your letter you have said that you think it is likely that schizophrenia is a group of diseases, anywhere from several to a score or more, with most, if not all having a genetically determined biochemical basis. These are all statements made in my paper. I think that the novelty in my paper is the suggestion that some of the genetic determinants involve vitamins, and that there is a reasonable method of handling some of these defects.

Also, on looking over the paper I have not been able to see in what way it constitutes an over-simplification. I tried to present my arguments in a clear way, and at the same time to be pretty rigorous.

I am pleased to learn that you are still plugging away at Huntington's chorea.

Your letter suggests that you can help me, in my effort to collect information about orthomolecular psychiatry. I have reprints of a couple of apparently good tests of nicotinic acid and nicotinamide (not carried out by Hoffer or Osmond). You mention that you have read papers describing experiments on chronic or acute schizophrenia with massive doses of nicotinamide (or of diphospho-pyridine nucleotide, conducted with attention to double-blind experimental design, and showing only the same slight degree of improvement as in schizophrenics given a placebo. I would be glad to have references to these papers.

I am, in fact, not interested in diphosphopyridine nucleotide. Your sentence begins with reference to nicotinamide, and then nicotinamide is left out in the second part of this sentence.

Please let me know about published papers of this sort on nicotinic acid or nicotinamide.

In papers in this field the investigators in general seem to expect that the substance being tried should cure all schizophrenics. They have not been looking for the possibility that some schizophrenics (with one type of the disease) would be benefitted by megavitamin therapy, with others not being benefitted. We have been trying to develop tests that would indicate to the psychiatrist what sort of therapy is needed by the patient. I must say that we are finding it a hard job.

I shall be pleased to check up on the references that you send to me.

Cordially,

Linus

LP:jj