Experimental attempts to produce phenylketonuria in animals: A critical review.

Studies attempting to produce PKU in animals are extensively reviewed. While some studies claim to have produced and consequently even prevented PKU in animals, such claims were found to be unjustified at this stage of research. Behavioral and biochemical criteria for assessing PKU are discussed along with certain methodological problems inherent in such work. The experimental production of PKU, on the other hand, offers an important model for the study of the relations between development, intellectual functioning, and biochemistry. (2 p. ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)