ArticleJournal of affective disorders2021
Associations between estrogen and progesterone, the kynurenine pathway, and inflammation in the post-partum.
Article in Journal of affective disorders, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 51 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Role of Aromatic Amino Acids in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome through Patients' Blood Metabolic Profiling: A Systematic Review of the Past Five Years.Journal of proteome research · 2025Pooled it
- Sex Differences in Tryptophan Metabolism: A Systematic Review Focused on Neuropsychiatric Disorders.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Pooled it
- Effect of hormone therapy on tryptophan metabolism and atherosclerosis among postmenopausal women.Climacteric : the journal of the International Menopause Society · 2025Trial
- Serotonin deficiency caused by inactivation of Tph2 in mice leads to widespread sex-dependent changes in cerebral oxidative metabolic activity.Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996) · 2026Article
- The placental tryptophan pathway across gestation: implications for pregnancy outcomes.Human reproduction update · 2026Review
- The role of oral contraceptive use in associations of concussion history with kynurenine pathway metabolites, inflammation, and psychological symptoms in female athletes.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2026Article
- Kynurenine pathway dysregulation in major depressive disorder: the convergence of excitotoxicity, neuroinflammation, and oxidative stress.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2026Review
- Contextual Regulation of the Kynurenine Pathway and Its Relevance for Personalized Psychiatry.Journal of personalized medicine · 2026Review
- Tryptophan's Journey Through Pregnancy: The Role of Serotonin.International journal of tryptophan research : IJTR · 2026Review
- Diminished Estrogen Induced Mitochondrial Protection and Immunosuppressive Microenvironment in Gastric Cancer with Depression.Cancers · 2025Article
- Biomarkers of reproductive psychiatric disorders.The British journal of psychiatry : the journal of mental science · 2025Review
- Sex differences in peripheral and central dysregulation of the kynurenine pathway in Parkinson's disease.NPJ Parkinson's disease · 2025Article
- Blood transcriptomic signatures associated with depression, or the risk for depression, in pregnant women from the Psychiatry Research And Motherhood - Depression (PRAM-D) study.Translational psychiatry · 2025Article
- Conventional and new immunotherapies for immune system dysregulation in postpartum mood disorders: comparisons to immune system dysregulations in bipolar disorder, major depression, and postpartum autoimmune thyroid disease.Expert review of clinical immunology · 2025Review
- A study on the differences in the gut microbiota and metabolism between male and female mice in different stress periods.Experimental biology and medicine (Maywood, N.J.) · 2025Article
- Association of estrogen receptor single nucleotide polymorphisms and perinatal depression.PloS one · 2025Article
- Exploring gut microbiota and spinal cord injury: pathogenesis, treatment strategies and prospects.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Review
- Activated kynurenine pathway metabolism by YKL-40 establishes an inhibitory immune microenvironment and drives glioblastoma development.Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS · 2024Article
- Salt-Responsive Gut Microbiota Induces Sex-Specific Blood Pressure Changes.Circulation research · 2024Article
- Sex Differences in Tryptophan Metabolism via the Kynurenine Pathway in Acute Ischemic Stroke.Clinical therapeutics · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundDepression during and after pregnancy is common, affecting at least 15% of women. Features of depression in pregnancy range from mild symptoms of disrupted mood and interest to severe depression and suicidal behavior. Previous studies suggest hormone- and immune dysregulations might contribute to post-partum depression, but consistent evidence is lacking.
methodsA total of 163 women were included in the study in the post-partum. Peri-partum depression (PPD) was diagnosed using SCID interviews and depressive symptoms were quantified using the Edinburgh Perinatal Depression Rating Scale (EPDS), retrospectively long-term, as well as acutely. Plasma estrogen, progesterone, pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines and kynurenine metabolites were measured in the post-partum.
resultsHigher estrogen and progesterone in the post-partum were linked to more severe depressive symptoms over pregnancy. In the post-partum, estrogen was positively correlated with the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 and negatively correlated with kynurenine and picolinic acid. Conversely, progesterone was negatively correlated with IL-1β and several metabolites in the kynurenine pathway, including quinolinic acid. LIMITATIONS: Associative study design, did not attempt to assess causality. Did not adjust hormone levels for medication effects.
conclusionsOur study suggests that higher sex hormones in the post-partum are linked to depression severity over pregnancy. Estrogen was coupled with a pro-inflammatory profile and neurotoxic kynurenine metabolites, whereas progesterone was linked to an anti-inflammatory profile in the post-partum.
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Registered trials
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.