Abstract |
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Tryptophan is utilised in various metabolic routes including protein synthesis, serotonin and melatonin synthesis and the kynurenine pathway. Perturbations in these pathways have been associated with neurodegenerative diseases and cancer. Here, we present a comprehensive kinetic model of the complex network of human tryptophan metabolism, based upon existing kinetic data for all enzymatic conversions and transporters. By integrating tissue-specific expression data, modelling tryptophan metabolism in liver and brain returned intermediate metabolite concentrations in the physiological range. Sensitivity and metabolic control analyses identified expected key enzymes to govern fluxes in the branches of the network. Combining tissue-specific models revealed a considerable impact of the kynurenine pathway in liver on the concentrations of neuroactive derivatives in the brain. Moreover, using expression data from a cancer study predicted metabolite changes that resembled the experimental observations. We conclude that the combination of the kinetic model with expression data represents a powerful diagnostic tool to predict alterations in tryptophan metabolism. The model is readily scalable to include more tissues, thereby enabling assessment of organismal tryptophan metabolism in health and disease.