January 25, 1968
Mr. Duane Wyckoff
Administrator
Mesa Vista Hospital
7850 Vista Hill
San Diego, California
Dear Mr. Wyckoff:
I am writing a preliminary letter of inquiry to you, at the suggestion of Dr. Jonas Salk.
I am carrying on research on schizophrenia—I have been working on the molecular basis of mental disease for about fifteen years. In the course of this work my associates and I have had access to mental patients in County-University Hospital, San Diego. We have need, however, for access to patients with chronic schizophrenia, who are not available to us at County-University Hospital. I asked Dr. Salk for advice about this problem, and he recommended that I talk with you.
The work that we are doing is a study of the metabolism of vital substances, especially vitamins. Our immediate program involves only the following steps: collection of a sample of urine, administration by mouth of a dose of ascorbic acid, collection of a second sample of urine, collection of a third sample of urine. We should like to carry out this test for about one or two dozen patients who are diagnosed as having schizophrenia.
I enclose a copy of the release form that we have been using.
Later on we shall, I think, want to carry out similar studies with other vitamins, and it might be desirable to carry them out on the same patients. Also, there is the possibility that we would want to repeat the ascorbic-acid tests.
If there is the possibility that we could make arrangements to carry on work of this sort in Mesa Vista Hospital or Vista Hill Hospital, possibly in collaboration with the Vista Hill Psychiatric Foundation, I should be glad to come to see you to talk about the matter.
Sincerely,
Linus Pauling
LP:jj
January
25, 1968
