Quantitative analyses of schizophrenia-associated metabolites in serum: serum D-lactate levels are negatively correlated with gamma-glutamylcysteine in medicated schizophrenia patients

PLoS One. 2014 Jul 8;9(7):e101652. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0101652. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

The serum levels of several metabolites are significantly altered in schizophrenia patients. In this study, we performed a targeted analysis of 34 candidate metabolites in schizophrenia patients (n = 25) and compared them with those in age- and gender-matched healthy subjects (n = 27). Orthogonal partial least square-discriminant analysis revealed that complete separation between controls and patients was achieved based on these metabolites. We found that the levels of γ-glutamylcysteine (γ-GluCys), linoleic acid, arachidonic acid, D-serine, 3-hydroxybutyrate, glutathione (GSH), 5-hydroxytryptamine, threonine, and tyrosine were significantly lower, while D-lactate, tryptophan, kynurenine, and glutamate levels were significantly higher in schizophrenia patients compared to controls. Using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis, the sensitivity, specificity, and the area under curve of γ-GluCys, a precursor of GSH, and D-lactate, a terminal metabolite of methylglyoxal, were 88.00%, 81.48%, and 0.8874, and 88.00%, 77.78%, and 0.8415, respectively. In addition, serum levels of D-lactate were negatively correlated with γ-GluCys levels in patients, but not in controls. The present results suggest that oxidative stress-induced damage may be involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Dipeptides / blood
  • Female
  • Glutathione / blood
  • Humans
  • Lactates / blood
  • Male
  • Metabolome*
  • Metabolomics* / methods
  • ROC Curve
  • Schizophrenia / blood
  • Schizophrenia / metabolism*
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Dipeptides
  • Lactates
  • Glutathione
  • gamma-glutamylcysteine