With respect to the paper published recently in Clinical Science by Campos et al. [1] on blood levels of glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase being more strongly associated with good outcome in acute ischaemic stroke than glutamate pyruvate transaminase levels, we would like to raise a cautionary note.
It has been well established that abnormally high concentrations of L-glutamate (glutamate) in the interstitial fluid and CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) of the brain are associated with several neurodegenerative conditions. Increased glutamate concentrations after acute ischaemic stroke are correlated with a poor neurological outcome. GOT (glutamate-oxaloacetate transaminase) and GPT (glutamate-pyruvate transaminase) are two enzymes that are able to metabolize blood glutamate, facilitating the lowering of extracellular levels of glutamate in the brain. The inverse correlation observed between GOT and GPT levels with blood glutamate levels, together with the association between GOT and GPT levels with good functional outcome, could be explained by...
