Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42357399›Full record

ArticleMolecules (Basel, Switzerland)2026

Pushing the Boundaries of Biomarker Discovery in Phenylketonuria: Metabolomic Profiling Reveals Novel Biomarkers and Their Associations with Phenylalanine.

Reem AlMalki, Shereen M Aleidi, Maha Al Mogren, Shaima Almohsen, Khalid M Sumaily, Ahmed Alfares, Anas M Abdel Rahman

Abstract read
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Article in Molecules (Basel, Switzerland), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Reem AlMalkiMetabolomics Section, Precision Medicine Laboratory Department, Genomics Medicine Center of Excellence, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh 11211, Saudi Arabia.
Shereen M AleidiCollege of Pharmacy, University of Sharjah, Sharjah 27272, United Arab Emirates.ORCID 0000-0001-9222-464X
Maha Al MogrenMetabolomics Section, Precision Medicine Laboratory Department, Genomics Medicine Center of Excellence, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh 11211, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0002-2244-6842
Shaima AlmohsenMetabolomics Section, Precision Medicine Laboratory Department, Genomics Medicine Center of Excellence, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh 11211, Saudi Arabia.
Khalid M SumailyClinical Biochemistry Unit, Pathology Department, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh 11461, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0001-9595-8649
Ahmed AlfaresMetabolomics Section, Precision Medicine Laboratory Department, Genomics Medicine Center of Excellence, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh 11211, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0003-4222-0952
Anas M Abdel RahmanMetabolomics Section, Precision Medicine Laboratory Department, Genomics Medicine Center of Excellence, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh 11211, Saudi Arabia.ORCID 0000-0002-9527-9424

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPhenylketonuria (PKU) is a rare genetic disorder caused by mutations in the

methodsDried blood spot (DBS) samples from 65 patients diagnosed with PKU and matched healthy controls were collected through the NBS program. An untargeted metabolomics analysis was conducted using liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) to profile metabolites and investigate altered metabolic pathways in patients with PKU.

resultsA total of 418 significantly dysregulated metabolites were identified in PKU patients. Among them, 90 metabolites were identified as endogenous human metabolites. The most significantly affected pathways were those related to the metabolism of aromatic amino acids and polysaccharides. Moreover, lipid metabolic pathways were dysregulated, including those involved in fatty acid and phospholipid biosynthesis. In addition to phenylalanine (AUC = 0.994), 1,11-Undecanedicarboxylic acid (UDCA) (AUC = 0.969) was significantly elevated in patients with PKU, suggesting it is a promising potential biomarker for PKU.

conclusionsUntargeted metabolomics revealed distinct metabolic alterations in patients with PKU, providing insights into disease pathophysiology. The identification of UDCA as a consistently elevated metabolite supports its potential utility as a supplementary biomarker for PKU diagnosis and monitoring. Further validation in larger cohorts, using a targeted metabolomics approach, is warranted.

Indexed as

BiomarkersMetabolomeMetabolomicsPhenylalaninePhenylketonuriasFemaleHumansInfant, NewbornMaleMetabolic Networks and PathwaysNeonatal ScreeningPhenylalanine HydroxylaseBiomarkersPhenylalaninePhenylalanine Hydroxylasebiomarkernext-generation metabolic screening (NGMS)phenylalaninephenylketonuriauntargeted metabolomics

Identifiers

PMID42357399
PMCPMC13304883

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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.