Min Bannister
Possessed dog
- Joined
- Sep 5, 2003
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I have never heard of this before. This unfortunate lady lacks an enzyme which breaks down trimethylamine in her gut causing her to smell of rotten fish!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-51006604
https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/trimethylaminuria/
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-51006604
Here is a more in-depth discussion of the condition.A woman who has a syndrome that causes her to smell of rotten fish says it is like "living with a death sentence".
Paula Thomas, 45, from Bristol, has trimethylaminuria (TMAU), which prevents the body from breaking down materials found in certain foods.
Mrs Thomas said she missed school plays to avoid being in crowded places, had been made to get off buses, and felt racially abused because of her smell.
https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/trimethylaminuria/
Trimethylaminuria is a rare disorder in which the body's metabolic processes fail to alter the chemical trimethylamine. Trimethylamine is notable for its unpleasant smell. It is the chemical that gives rotten fish a bad smell. When the normal metabolic process fails, trimethylamine accumulates in the body, and its odor is detected in the person's sweat, urine and breath. The consequences of emitting a foul odor can be socially and psychologically damaging among adolescents and adults.
The genetic or primary form of this disorder is transmitted as an autosomal recessive trait. The metabolic deficiency occurs as a result of a failure in the cell to make a specific protein, in this case the enzyme flavin-containing monooxygenase 3 (FMO3). Enzymes are nature's catalysts and act to speed up biochemical processes. Without this enzyme, foods containing carnitine, choline and/or trimethylamine N-oxide are processed to trimethylamine and no further, causing a strong fishy odor.