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Aetiology

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Pellagra is rare in the UK as niacin occurs in many plant and animal foods and can also be synthesised from tryptophan.

Causes of pellagra:

  • a monotonous maize diet (maize is low in tryptophan)
  • a very low protein diet
  • conditions producing considerable loss of protein e.g. nephrotic syndrome

Other causes include:

  • malabsorption e.g. coeliac disease
  • isoniazid - isoniazid is a pyridoxine antagonist - this agent is essential for conversion of tryptophan to nicotinic acid
  • Hartnup Disease
  • carcinoid syndrome - consumption of tryptophan by serotonin producing tumour
  • alcoholism

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