ArticlePloS one2017
Metabolite patterns predicting sex and age in participants of the Karlsruhe Metabolomics and Nutrition (KarMeN) study.
Article in PloS one, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 135 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
135 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 207 citations in OpenAlex.
- Replication and mediation of the association between the metabolome and clinical markers of metabolic health in an adolescent cohort study.Scientific reports · 2023Pooled it
- Validating a Multibiomarker Panel for the Assessment of Quantity and Quality of Plant Foods in the Diet (PLAENTI): Protocol for a Parallel Group-Designed Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR research protocols · 2026Trial
- Trimethylamine-Nutrients · 2020Trial
- Urinary metabolic age from high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy reveals longitudinal aging patterns.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2026Article
- Amino acid-based biological age clock and its implications for human health and aging.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Metabolomics and Human Health: Progress, Insights, Challenges and the Concept of a Healthy Metabolome.Biomolecules · 2026Review
- Multi-omics analysis of associations between host demographics and saliva metabolome, sugar profiles, and microbiome profiles.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Salivary Metabolomic Signatures Associated with Sex-Specific Psychological Distress in Syrian Refugees: A Proof-of-Principle Study.Metabolites · 2026Article
- Review
- Metabolic signatures of the integrated profile of cardiovascular autonomic modulation and cardiorespiratory fitness in apparently healthy individuals.Physiological reports · 2026Article
- Plasma creatine, estimated intramuscular creatine, transcellular gradient and the risk of mortality: Results from the PREVEND study.European journal of clinical investigation · 2026Article
- Sex Modifies Metabolic Pathways Associated with Lipids in Untargeted Metabolomics: The Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study, 2005-2006.Metabolites · 2025Article
- Genetic architecture and analysis practices of circulating metabolites in the NHLBI Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine Program.American journal of human genetics · 2025Article
- Prospective association between plasma amino acids and healthy aging in older adults.Journal of internal medicine · 2025Article
- A multi-level gene-diet interaction analysis of fish oil and 14 polyunsaturated fatty acid traits identifies the FADS and GPR12 loci.HGG advances · 2025Article
- Article
- Urinary Hippuric Acid as a Sex-Dependent Biomarker for Fruit and Nut Intake Raised from the EAT-Lancet Index and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Analysis.Metabolites · 2025Article
- Metabolomics biomarkers of frailty: a longitudinal study of aging female and male mice.npj aging · 2025Article
- Recommendations for sample selection, collection and preparation for NMR-based metabolomics studies of blood.Metabolomics : Official journal of the Metabolomic Society · 2025Review
- Serum phospholipids during aging: A comprehensive systematic review of cross-sectional and case-control studies.Health promotion perspectives · 2025Review
75 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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Authors and funding
16 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Physiological and functional parameters, such as body composition, or physical fitness are known to differ between men and women and to change with age. The goal of this study was to investigate how sex and age-related physiological conditions are reflected in the metabolome of healthy humans and whether sex and age can be predicted based on the plasma and urine metabolite profiles. In the cross-sectional KarMeN (Karlsruhe Metabolomics and Nutrition) study 301 healthy men and women aged 18-80 years were recruited. Participants were characterized in detail applying standard operating procedures for all measurements including anthropometric, clinical, and functional parameters. Fasting blood and 24 h urine samples were analyzed by targeted and untargeted metabolomics approaches, namely by mass spectrometry coupled to one- or comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography or liquid chromatography, and by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. This yielded in total more than 400 analytes in plasma and over 500 analytes in urine. Predictive modelling was applied on the metabolomics data set using different machine learning algorithms. Based on metabolite profiles from urine and plasma, it was possible to identify metabolite patterns which classify participants according to sex with > 90% accuracy. Plasma metabolites important for the correct classification included creatinine, branched-chain amino acids, and sarcosine. Prediction of age was also possible based on metabolite profiles for men and women, separately. Several metabolites important for this prediction could be identified including choline in plasma and sedoheptulose in urine. For women, classification according to their menopausal status was possible from metabolome data with > 80% accuracy. The metabolite profile of human urine and plasma allows the prediction of sex and age with high accuracy, which means that sex and age are associated with a discriminatory metabolite signature in healthy humans and therefore should always be considered in metabolomics studies.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.