Postmortem Accumulation of 3-Methoxytyramine in the Brain

To the Editor: Both forensic pathologists and neuroscientists need a gauge that is consistent among specimens and that shows the interval between death (defined as circulatory arrest with cessation of blood flow) and sample analysis. Recent investigations in our laboratory have suggested that postmortem accumulation in the putamen of the dopamine metabolite 3-methoxytyramine may serve as a quantitative referent for assessment of circulatory arrest. Twenty-milligram cores of dorsal putamen at the level of the anterior commissure were sonicated in 120 μl of 0.1 M perchloric acid to precipitate protein. 3-Methoxytyramine was measured in 8-μl aliquots of the supernatant of these.