Electrochemical determination of kynurenine pathway metabolites—Challenges and perspectives

Abstract

In recent years, tryptophan metabolism via the kynurenine pathway has become one of the most active research areas thanks to its involvement in a variety of physiological processes, especially in conditions associated with immune dysfunction, central nervous system disorders, autoimmunity, infection, diabetes, and cancer. The kynurenine pathway generates several metabolites with immunosuppressive functions or neuroprotective, antioxidant, or toxic properties. An increasing body of work on this topic uncovers a need for reliable analytical methods to help identify and quantify tryptophan metabolites at physiological concentrations in biological samples of different origins. Recent methodological advances in the fabrication and application of electrochemical sensors promise a rise in the future generation of novel analytical systems. This work summarizes current knowledge and provides important suggestions with respect to direct electrochemical determinations of kynurenine pathway metabolites (kynurenines) in complex biological matrices. Measurement challenges, limitations, and future opportunities of electroanalytical methods to advance study of the implementation of kynurenines in disease conditions are discussed.