Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Dec 24;25(1):273.
doi: 10.3390/ijms25010273.

Tryptophan Metabolism in Postmenopausal Women with Functional Constipation

Aleksandra Blonska  1 , Marcin Chojnacki  1 , Anna Macieja  2 , Janusz Blasiak  3 , Ireneusz Majsterek  4 , Jan Chojnacki  1 , Tomasz Poplawski  5
Affiliations

Tryptophan Metabolism in Postmenopausal Women with Functional Constipation

Aleksandra Blonska et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Constipation belongs to conditions commonly reported by postmenopausal women, but the mechanism behind this association is not fully known. The aim of the present study was to determine the relationship between some metabolites of tryptophan (TRP) and the occurrence and severity of abdominal symptoms (Rome IV) in postmenopausal women with functional constipation (FC, n = 40) as compared with age-adjusted postmenopausal women without FC. All women controlled their TRP intake in their daily diet. Urinary levels of TRP and its metabolites, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), kynurenine (KYN), and 3-indoxyl sulfate (indican, 3-IS), were determined by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry. Dysbiosis was assessed by a hydrogen-methane breath test. Women with FC consumed less TRP and had a lower urinary level of 5-HIAA, but higher levels of KYN and 3-IS compared with controls. The severity of symptoms showed a negative correlation with the 5-HIAA level, and a positive correlation with the 3-IS level. In conclusion, changes in TRP metabolism may contribute to FC in postmenopausal women, and dysbiosis may underlie this contribution.

Keywords: 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid; functional constipation; indican; kynurenine; menopause; tryptophan.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Urinary levels of tryptophan (TRP, left panel) and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA, right panel) expressed in milligrams per gram of creatinine (mg/gCR) in postmenopausal women (controls, n = 40) and postmenopausal women with functional constipation (patients, n = 40). Median with boxes representing I and III quartiles, and error bars represent minimal and maximal values. Differences between patients and controls were evaluated by the Mann–Whitney U test; *—p < 0.05.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Urinary levels of kynurenine (KYN, left panel) and 3-indoxyl sulfate (3-IS, right panel) expressed in milligrams per gram of creatinine (mg/gCR) in postmenopausal women (controls, n = 40) and postmenopausal women with functional constipation (patients, n = 40). Median with boxes representing I and III quartiles, and error bars represent minimal and maximal values. Differences between patients and controls for both compounds were evaluated by the Mann–Whitney U test; ***—p < 0.001.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Correlation between the severity of symptoms (S-score) and the urinary levels of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) and 3-indoxyl sulfate (3-IS) in postmenopausal women with functional constipations (n = 40). The correlations were analyzed using the Spearman rank test with the rho rank correlation coefficient (r).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Barberio B., Judge C., Savarino E.V., Ford A.C. Global prevalence of functional constipation according to the Rome criteria: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Gastroenterol. Hepatol. 2021;6:638–648. doi: 10.1016/S2468-1253(21)00111-4. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Forootan M., Bagheri N., Darvishi M. Chronic Constipation: A Review of Literature. Medicine. 2018;97:e10631. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000010631. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Russo M., Strisciuglio C., Scarpato E., Bruzzese D., Casertano M., Staiano A. Functional Chronic Constipation: Rome III Criteria Versus Rome IV Criteria. J. Neurogastroenterol. Motil. 2019;25:123–128. doi: 10.5056/jnm18035. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Edwards H., Duchesne A., Au A.S., Einstein G. The Many Menopauses: Searching the Cognitive Research Literature for Menopause Types. Menopause. 2019;26:45–65. doi: 10.1097/GME.0000000000001171. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Arar M.A., Erbil N. The Effect of Menopausal Symptoms on Women’s Daily Life Activities. Przegląd Menopauzalny. 2023;22:6–15. doi: 10.5114/pm.2023.126436. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources