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Phenylalanine has been around as long as life itself, if not longer. It's not something that someone invented one day. It's like oxygen: no one invented it, it's been here as long as anyone can remember, and far longer! J. Heinrich Matthaei and Marshall W. Nirenberg figured out a way to make a bacterium produce long chains of phenylalanine molecules in 1961.
Phenylalanine isn't a health concern for most people. However, for people who have the genetic disorder phenylketonuria (PKU) or certain other health conditions, phenylalanine can be a serious health concern. Phenylalanine can cause mental retardation, brain damage, seizures and other problems in people with PKU.his warning helps people with PKU avoid products that are a source of phenylalanine. If you don't have PKU, you probably don't need to worry about harmful health effects of phenylalanine â with certain important exceptions. Aspartame in large doses can cause a rapid increase in the brain levels of phenylalanine.