Research
Hormonal
Exercise-induced elevation of muscle PGC-1α shifts kynurenine metabolism toward kynurenic acid, reducing neurotoxic kynurenine accumulation and conferring resistance to stress-induced depression.
For those struggling with stress or depression, regular endurance exercise helps your muscles process tryptophan in a way that prevents neurotoxic buildup in the brain. This biological mechanism offers protection against stress-induced mood disorders.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
The increase in KATs expression in the gain-of-function model shifted KYN metabolism toward enhanced synthesis of KYNA, which is unable to cross the blood-brain barrier, thereby reducing the accumulation of plasma KYN with its neurotoxic effects on the brain. Remarkably, this shift conferred resistance to chronic mild stress-induced depression in mice overexpressing PGC-1α in their muscles.
Why this rating
Strong mechanistic evidence in mouse models of depression.
Source
Endocrine Crosstalk Between Skeletal Muscle and the Brain
Julien Delezie et al. · Frontiers in Neurology · 2018
DOI 10.3389/fneur.2018.00698
narrative_reviewCited 267×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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