Clinical Guidelines

A Systemic Problem in Metabolite Identification?

One of the most abundant metabolites in human urine has been misidentified in nearly half of published reports, study finds

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Jeremy Nicholson and colleagues conducted a thorough re-evaluation of over 6,000 urine samples from humans and rodents, uncovering a systemic misidentification of phenylacetylglutamine (PAGIn) as phenylacetylglycine (PAGly) in numerous NMR studies. This error, attributed to reliance on outdated spectral databases, threatens the credibility of metabolomics, especially as metabolites gain clinical relevance. Nicholson emphasizes the need for rigorous validation in biomarker assignment to prevent ongoing misinterpretations in scientific literature.

Original Source(s)

A Systemic Problem in Metabolite Identification?

One of the most abundant metabolites in human urine has been misidentified in nearly half of published reports, study finds

  • by James Strachan

  • February 12, 2026

  • 8 min

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