ReviewInternational journal of molecular sciences2025
Kynurenine Pathway Metabolites as Mediators of Exercise-Induced Mood Enhancement, Fatigue Resistance, and Neuroprotection.
Review in International journal of molecular sciences, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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
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.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Natural products alleviate exercise-induced fatigue by modulating gut microbiota: a systematic review.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2026Pooled it
- Moderate-intensity treadmill exercise improved the anticonvulsant efficacy of topiramate and attenuated anxiety and depressive-like side effects in epileptic rats by upregulating 5-HT1A receptors in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex.IBRO neuroscience reports · 2026Article
- Exercise and Intestinal Barrier Integrity: Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutic Potential in Gut Health and Disease.Biology · 2026Review
- Exercise and Sports Metabolomics: Analytical Platforms, Metabolite Annotation, Pathway-Level Interpretation, and Biomarker-Panel Readiness.Metabolites · 2026Review
- Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Novel Morpholine-Coumarin Derivatives for Inflammation-Associated Depression.Biomolecules · 2026Article
- Epigenetic memory in periodontal healing: mechanisms, evidence, and emerging therapeutic perspectives.Odontology · 2026Review
- Kynurenine Pathway, Nrf2 and NF-κB Cross-Regulation in the CNS: An Overview.Molecular neurobiology · 2026Review
- Physical Activity, Metabolic Dysfunction, and the Kynurenine Pathway in Endometriosis and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Literature Review.Biomolecules · 2026Review
- Shear-Calibrated High-Intensity Interval Training to Promote Endothelial Autophagy and Delay Vascular Senescence: A Biomarker-Guided Approach.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Major depressive disorder is increasingly recognized as a metabolic-immune disorder in which chronic inflammation diverts tryptophan (Trp) metabolism toward the kynurenine pathway (KP), reducing serotonin synthesis and producing neurotoxic metabolites such as quinolinic acid (QA). Elevated kynurenine (KYN)/Trp ratios and an altered QA/kynurenic acid (KYNA) balance have been consistently reported in depressed individuals, implicating the KP as a key therapeutic target. Exercise provides a unique, translationally relevant intervention: unlike pharmacological agents acting directly on neurotransmission, contracting skeletal muscle acts as a "kynurenine sink" by inducing kynurenine aminotransferases that convert circulating KYN into neuroprotective KYNA, thereby reducing brain KYN uptake and mitigating excitotoxicity. Clinical studies and meta-analyses confirm that aerobic, resistance, and high-intensity training produce antidepressant effects comparable to pharmacotherapy, while also improving cognition, fatigue tolerance, and cardiometabolic function. Beyond KP remodeling, exercise-induced myokines (irisin, IL-6, BDNF, apelin, FGF21) and adipokines (adiponectin, leptin modulators) coordinate systemic anti-inflammatory and neurotrophic adaptations that enhance resilience and brain plasticity. Furthermore, pharmacological "exercise mimetics" and metabolic modulators, such as PPAR agonists, AMPK activators, NAD
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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.