Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34630391›Full record

SynthesisFrontiers in immunology2021

Brain

Katrien Skorobogatov, Livia De Picker, Robert Verkerk, Violette Coppens, Marion Leboyer, Norbert Müller, Manuel Morrens

Open access · goldAbstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Frontiers in immunology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 66 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
66citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
3.9field-weighted citation impact, top 5% 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

66 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 92 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  13. Exploratory Cohort Study of Depressive Symptoms in South Africans with HIV-1 Subtype C: Associations with Kynurenine Pathway Metabolites and Inflammatory Markers.Journal of neuroimmune pharmacology : the official journal of the Society on NeuroImmune Pharmacology · 2026
    Article
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6 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

7 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.

Katrien SkorobogatovFaculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Collaborative Antwerp Psychiatric Research Institute (CAPRI), University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
Livia De PickerFaculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Collaborative Antwerp Psychiatric Research Institute (CAPRI), University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
Robert VerkerkLaboratory of Medical Biochemistry, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
Violette CoppensFaculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Collaborative Antwerp Psychiatric Research Institute (CAPRI), University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
Marion LeboyerINSERM U955, Equipe Psychiatrie Translationnelle, Créteil, France.
Norbert MüllerDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, München, Germany.
Manuel MorrensFaculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Collaborative Antwerp Psychiatric Research Institute (CAPRI), University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
University of Antwerp · BEHôpitaux Universitaires Henri-Mondor · FRLudwig-Maximilians-Universität München · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Objective: Disturbances in the kynurenine pathway have been implicated in the pathophysiology of psychotic and mood disorders, as well as several other psychiatric illnesses. It remains uncertain however to what extent metabolite levels detectable in plasma or serum reflect brain kynurenine metabolism and other disease-specific pathophysiological changes. The primary objective of this systematic review was to investigate the concordance between peripheral and central (CSF or brain tissue) kynurenine metabolites. As secondary aims we describe their correlation with illness course, treatment response, and neuroanatomical abnormalities in psychiatric diseases. Methods: We performed a systematic literature search until February 2021 in PubMed. We included 27 original research articles describing a correlation between peripheral and central kynurenine metabolite measures in preclinical studies and human samples from patients suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders and other conditions. We also included 32 articles reporting associations between peripheral KP markers and symptom severity, CNS pathology or treatment response in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or major depressive disorder. Results: For kynurenine and 3-hydroxykynurenine, moderate to strong concordance was found between peripheral and central concentrations not only in psychiatric disorders, but also in other (patho)physiological conditions. Despite discordant findings for other metabolites (mainly tryptophan and kynurenic acid), blood metabolite levels were associated with clinical symptoms and treatment response in psychiatric patients, as well as with observed neuroanatomical abnormalities and glial activity. Conclusion: Only kynurenine and 3-hydroxykynurenine demonstrated a consistent and reliable concordance between peripheral and central measures. Evidence from psychiatric studies on kynurenine pathway concordance is scarce, and more research is needed to determine the validity of peripheral kynurenine metabolite assessment as proxy markers for CNS processes. Peripheral kynurenine and 3-hydroxykynurenine may nonetheless represent valuable predictive and prognostic biomarker candidates for psychiatric disorders.

Indexed as

BiomarkersMetabolic Networks and PathwaysAnimalsBlood-Brain BarrierBrainDisease Models, AnimalDisease SusceptibilityHumansKynurenineMental DisordersPhenotypePrognosisResearchTryptophanBiomarkersKynurenineTryptophanblood-brain barrierCSFimmuneinflammationkynureninepsychiatrytryptophan

Identifiers

PMID34630391
PMCPMC8495160
OpenAlexW3204211327

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.