Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32577079›Full record

ReviewInternational journal of tryptophan research : IJTR2020

Tryptophan Metabolites Along the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis: An Interkingdom Communication System Influencing the Gut in Health and Disease.

Annalisa Bosi, Davide Banfi, Michela Bistoletti, Cristina Giaroni, Andreina Baj

Open access · goldAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in International journal of tryptophan research : IJTR, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 116 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
116citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
10.1field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

116 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 202 citations in OpenAlex.

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  16. A Developmental Perspective on the Intestinal Microbiota in Crohn's Disease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
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56 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Annalisa BosiDepartment of Medicine and Surgery, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5027-880X
Davide BanfiDepartment of Medicine and Surgery, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy.
Michela BistolettiDepartment of Medicine and Surgery, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy.
Cristina GiaroniDepartment of Medicine and Surgery, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3760-3441
Andreina BajDepartment of Medicine and Surgery, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0088-2712
University of Insubria · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The 'microbiota-gut-brain axis' plays a fundamental role in maintaining host homeostasis, and different immune, hormonal, and neuronal signals participate to this interkingdom communication system between eukaryota and prokaryota. The essential aminoacid tryptophan, as a precursor of several molecules acting at the interface between the host and the microbiota, is fundamental in the modulation of this bidirectional communication axis. In the gut, tryptophan undergoes 3 major metabolic pathways, the 5-HT, kynurenine, and AhR ligand pathways, which may be directly or indirectly controlled by the saprophytic flora. The importance of tryptophan metabolites in the modulation of the gastrointestinal tract is suggested by several preclinical and clinical studies; however, a thorough revision of the available literature has not been accomplished yet. Thus, this review attempts to cover the major aspects on the role of tryptophan metabolites in host-microbiota cross-talk underlaying regulation of gut functions in health conditions and during disease states, with particular attention to 2 major gastrointestinal diseases, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), both characterized by psychiatric disorders. Research in this area opens the possibility to target tryptophan metabolism to ameliorate the knowledge on the pathogenesis of both diseases, as well as to discover new therapeutic strategies based either on conventional pharmacological approaches or on the use of pre- and probiotics to manipulate the microbial flora.

Indexed as

central nervous systemdysbiosisenteric microenvironmententeric nervous systeminflammatory bowel disease (IBD)irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)kynurenineMicrobiota-gut-brain axistryptophan

Identifiers

PMID32577079
PMCPMC7290275
OpenAlexW3034589050

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.