ArticlePloS one2025
Associations between Kynurenine pathway metabolites and cognitive dysfunction in major depressive disorder.
Article in PloS one, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Associations between immuno-metabolic markers, working memory, and functional brain activation in depressive and anxiety disorders.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2026Article
- Tryptophan Metabolism in Digestive and Extra-Digestive Diseases: Mechanisms, Clinical Implications, and Therapeutic Perspectives.Nutrients · 2026Review
- Neurobiology of Anxiety and Depression in CP/CPPS: A Narrative Review of Underlying Mechanisms.Neurology international · 2026Review
- Contextual Regulation of the Kynurenine Pathway and Its Relevance for Personalized Psychiatry.Journal of personalized medicine · 2026Review
- Ceramides and neuroinflammation as immunometabolic drivers and biomarkers of major depressive disorder, treatment-resistant depression, and suicidal vulnerability.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
This research sought to investigate the relationship between cognitive impairment and kynurenine pathway metabolites in individuals diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD). A total of 67 patients diagnosed with MDD and 61 healthy controls (HC) were enrolled in this study. Cognitive function was assessed utilizing the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery. Plasma levels of tryptophan (TRP), kynurenine (KYN), kynurenic acid (KYNA), and quinolinic acid (QUIN) were quantified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Subsequently, we examined the potential associations between metabolites of the KYN pathway and cognitive dysfunction. MDD patients exhibited significantly poorer performance across all cognitive domains, including processing speed, attention/vigilance, working memory, verbal learning, visual learning, reasoning and problem-solving, and social cognition. Inter-group comparisons indicated that levels of KYN, QUIN, and the KYN/TRP ratio in MDD patients were significantly lower than those in HC, whereas KYNA and the KYNA/QUIN ratio were significantly higher. In MDD patients, a negative correlation was observed between KYN levels and working memory (r = -0.302, p = 0.020), and the KYN/TRP ratio was also negatively correlated with working memory (r = -0.307, p = 0.018). Our findings indicate that impaired working memory in MDD is correlated with increased KYN levels and KYN/TRP ratio. This suggests that the KYN pathway may play a role in the pathological mechanisms underlying neurocognitive dysfunction, particularly working memory deficits, in MDD.
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