[bb_misc]

The enzyme is supposed to regulate monoamine, which are neurotransmitters :

* Catecholamines:
o Dopamine (DA)
o Norepinephrine (NE) (noradrenaline, NA)
o Epinephrine (Epi) (adrenaline)

* Serotonin (5-HT)
* Melatonin
* Histamine
* Thyronamines, a new group of compounds derived from thyroid hormones

* Trace amines:
o ?-Phenylethylamine (PEA, ?-PEA)
o Tyramine
o Tryptamine



I just don't see what the link is with therobromine since it does not share any chemical structure with the above listed substances. I've searched for relations with methylxanthines (even if they aren't neurotransmitters), and found nothing...

[constant thinker]

Don't cross post.

[Yggdrasil]

How exactly is theobromine thought to interact with monoamine oxidase?  If theobromine is a competitive inhibitor of MAO, then one would expect structural similarities between theobromine and the substrates of MAO (although the structural similarities are not always obvious as is the case with some estrogen receptor antagonists [like tamoxifen]).  However, for a small molecule to interact with MAO, it does not necessarily need to mimick the structure of the enzyme's substrates.  There are many examples of small molecules inhibiting an enzyme by binding to pockets far away from the enzyme's active site, which does not require the molecule to be a substrate analog.  Furthermore, small molecules could also affect MAO activity by binding enzymes which act upstream of MAO/regulate the activity of MAO.