14.2.2025
Doctoral thesis on the metabolic differences between Prostate Cancer and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia
M.Sc. Mohammed Znibers doctoral thesis in Chemistry will be put forth for public defence at the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Åbo Akademi University.
The thesis is entitled 1H-NMR Metabolomics of Prostate Cancer and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia.
The public defence of the doctoral thesis takes place on Friday 21 February 2025, at 1PM in auditorium Armefelt, Arken, Tehtaankatu 2, Turku. Professor Jose Luis Izquierdo Garcia, Complutense University of Madrid, Spain will serve as opponent and Associate Professor Tan Phat Huynh, Åbo Akademi University, as custos.
Summary
This doctoral thesis investigates the metabolic differences between Prostate Cancer (PCa) and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) using 1H-NMR-based metabolomics. PCa, being the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths among men worldwide, and the high prevalence of BPH in aging males, highlight the clinical need for accurate differentiation between these two conditions. Current screening methods, such as prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing and digital rectal examination (DRE), are widely used but are hindered by poor specificity and high rate of false positives. This research proposes 1H-NMR-based metabolomics as a promising alternative, offering a non-invasive, rapid, and accurate screening method. Comparative analysis revealed that 1H-NMR-based urine profiling is the most accurate, achieving 95% accuracy and an Area Under the Curve (AUC) of 0.98, thus outperforming PSA and 1H-NMR-based serum metabolomics in screening PCa. Metabolomic profiling of serum and urine samples demonstrated potential biomarkers, highlighting metabolic changes associated with cancer progression. Additionally, this thesis introduces Protomix, a Python package designed to streamline 1H-NMR-based metabolomics preprocessing, improving the reproducibility and accuracy of metabolomic data analysis.
Mohammed Zniber was born in 1995 in Kenitra, Morocco. He can be reached by email mohammed.zniber@abo.fi.
The doctoral thesis can be read online through the Doria publication archive.