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What effect does PKU have on the body?

Updated: 8/11/2023
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15y ago

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Your body isn't able to break down phenylalanine, which is in a lot of foods including meats. Your body then stores up the proteins instead of getting rid of them. It can cause mental retardation. All 50 states screen newborns in the hospital for PKU.

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15y ago
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13y ago

preliminary research suggests that nerve cells of PKU patients also have difficulty absorbing tyrosine. This abnormality may explain why many PKU patients who receive sufficient dietary tyrosine still experience some form of learning disability.

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13y ago

In untreated PKU patients, abnormally high phenylalanine levels in the blood and brain can produce nerve cells with "deformed" axons and dendrites, and cause imperfections in the myelin sheath referred to as hypomyelination and demylenation.

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Q: What effect does PKU have on the body?
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What does PKU stand for?

Phenylketonuria (PKU) is not an eating disorder. It is an inherited disorder which the body cannot break down phenylalanine, which is a part of protein. If PKU is not treated soon after birth, it can cause brain and nervous system damage.


What is a fatal genetic disorder in which metabolic wastes build up in the body?

PKU


How does pku affect the patients physical emotional intellectual and social needs?

Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a genetic disorder that is characterized by an inability of the body to utilize the essential amino acid, phenylalanine. Symptoms include irritability, nervous system function problems and decreased body growth.


Why is phenylalanine observed in the urine of a classical PKU patient?

PKU stands for phenylketonuria, the classic symptom of which (and the diagnostic test for the disease) is phenylalanine in the urine. This is a genetic disorder in which the body is unable to process phenylalalanine, so it is excreted in the urine.


What is the survival rate for PKU?

100%


Is there anything bad in phenylalanine?

No, it is simply put on packages and soda cans because there is a specific disease that can harm people if they ingest it. The disease is phenylketonuria, or PKU. It is a genetic disorder that keeps your body from metabolizing phenylalanine, which is an amino acid. If you have PKU and eat too much phenylalanine, it will cause mental retardation. NutraSweet has phenylalanine in it, so they don't want PKU sufferers to use it for obvious reasons. So...phenylalanine is okay for you if you don't have PKU.


When was the first case of pku reported?

First case of PKU was reported in Munster Germany in 1964.


How does PKU impact protein synthesis?

PKU is a somatic genetic defect in an enzyme that metabolizes phenylalanine.


How many babies are born with PKU?

1 in every 10000 caucasin babies have PKU when they are born.


What color tube would you use for a PKU?

A PKU is a serum test, so it goes in a red top.


Are males and females both susceptible to PKU?

Yes, both males and females are susceptible to phenylketonuria (PKU). PKU is an inherited disorder that affects the ability of the body to break down an amino acid called phenylalanine. It is caused by a defective gene that can be passed down from either parent to their child, regardless of the child's sex.


How does studying genetic disorders such as pku help biologist understand normal alleles?

PKU is a genetic disorder that, when untreated, is characterized by mental ... but, in a person with PKU, this enzyme is defective.