Citation

Schwieler L, Trepci A, Krzyzanowski S, Hermansson S, Granqvist M, Piehl F, Venckunas T, Brazaitis M, Kamandulis S, Lindqvist D, Jones AD, Erhardt S, Brundin L. Bioanalysis 2020; 12(6): 379-392.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Future Science)

DOI

10.4155/bio-2019-0303

PMID

32209024

PMCID

PMC9472175

Abstract

AIM: Kynurenine metabolites are potential modulators of psychiatric disease. We aimed to develop a highly sensitive biochemical analysis of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tryptophan (TRP) metabolites, to investigate the stability of metabolites and to confirm our previous findings of aberrant CSF quinolinic acid (QUIN) and picolinic acid (PIC) in suicide attempters using this method.

METHODology & results: Ten CSF TRP metabolites were analyzed with ultraperformance LC-MS/MS. The method showed small intra- and interassay variation. Metabolites were stable following freeze-thaw cycles. A decreased CSF PIC/QUIN ratio was found in suicide attempters.

CONCLUSION: The feasibility of reliably determining CSF TRP metabolites were demonstrated, including separation of the two isomers PIC and nicotinic acid (NA) and the finding of a reduced PIC/QUIN ratio replicated in suicide attempters.

Language: en

Keywords

Humans; Adult; Female; Male; Middle Aged; suicide; Young Adult; Cohort Studies; Suicide, Attempted; Case-Control Studies; Chromatography, Liquid; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Mental Disorders; Multiple Sclerosis; nicotinic acid; quinolinic acid; LC–MS/MS; Kynurenine; Tryptophan; picolinic acid; Picolinic Acids; Quinolinic Acid; tryptophan-kynurenine pathway