tryptophan
Pathways
Studies (5)
Studies on Tryptophan-Niacin Metabolism in Streptozotocin Diabetic Rats
Rats where split into 2 groups, one group was injected with a single does of streptozotocin at a dose of 60 mg/kg body weight, which is a chemical that is used to induce diabetes. After 12 weeks it was found that the diabetes group was only able to convert half as much tryptophan to niacins as the control group. The rats in the diabetic group had twice the excretion of xanthurenic acid in their urine. Xanthurenic acid is a waste product that is produced when tryptophan is not converted into niacin.
Antidepressants may lead to a decrease in niacin and NAD in patients with poor dietary intake
Authors hypothesis that antidepressants tilt tryptophan metabolism towards making serotonin instead of niacin, which in turn can lead to niacin/NAD+ deficiency that exacerbates common psychiatric problems.
The COVID-19 Burden or Tryptophan Syndrome: Autoimmunity, Immunoparalysis and Tolerance in a Tumorigenic Environment
Long covid is due to changes in the metabolism of tryptophan and the lack of niacin (NAD/NADH+). Tryptophan has its metabolism altered by the lack of intestinal absorption due to internalization of ACE-2 and hypoxemia and inflammation, diverting its products to the formation of toxic Kynurenine metabolites. The longer time under hypoxemia, the less niacin and the more tryptophan will deviate to Kynurenine in an inflamed environment
The oxidative stress-induced niacin sink (OSINS) model for HIV pathogenesis
Talks about how intracellular niacin depletion along leads to tryptophan depletion as the body attempts to compensate by synthesizing niacin from tryptophan. And how this imbalance impairs the immune system in HIV.
Gut melatonin: A potent candidate in the diversified journey of melatonin research
This paper investigates the production melatonin in the gut, notably it being unrelated to the day/light cycle and how eating patterns affect its production, and what the produced melatonin may be used for.