Therapeutic potential of edaravone and flurbiprofen in valproic acid-induced autism: Targeting oxidative stress and neuroinflammation.

Phosphate accounts for about 0.6% of body weight at birth and about 1% of body weight in the adult: 85% of phosphate is found in the skeleton and teeth, while the remaining 15% is found in extracellular fluid and soft tissues []. Phosphate is essential for numerous physiological processes, including cellular metabolism and signaling, and plays a crucial role for maintaining phospholipid bilayers and nucleic acids’ structure. Moreover, phosphate plays a key role in intracellular acid-base buffering, is essential for ATP-dependent cellular processes including those in neurons, and is necessary for the maintenance of bone integrity [,]. This narrative review was conducted through a structured literature search across the PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science databases, encompassing literature published up to January 2026. The search strategy utilized a combination of Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) and relevant text keywords joined by Boolean operators (AND, OR): “phosphate”, “mineral metabolism”, “phosphatonins”, “hypophosphatemia”, “hyperphosphatemia”, “biomineralization”, “FGF23”, “Klotho”, “vitamin D”, “parathyroid hormone”, “chronic kidney disease”, “tumor-induced osteomalacia”, and “X-linked hypophosphatemia”. The inclusion criteria comprised English-language, peer-reviewed articles, including original clinical and experimental studies, international guidelines, meta-analyses, and key narrative or systematic reviews. Articles were excluded if they were conference abstracts, letters to the editor, non-English publications, or focused on topics outside the scope of human phosphate metabolism. Dietary phosphorus is widely available in the human diet and exists in two distinct forms: organic and inorganic. Organic phosphate is naturally bound to proteins and is predominantly found in protein-rich foods such as dairy products, meat, fish, eggs, legumes, and nuts []. Its intestinal absorption is mediated by active transcellular transport via sodium-dependent phosphate co-transporter type IIb (NaPiIIb) and passive paracellular pathways, resulting in a moderate bioavailability of approximately 40% to 60% []. Notably, the absorption of organic phosphate from plant-based foods (e.g., cereals and legumes) is significantly lower (often below 30%) due to the presence of phytates, which human enzymes cannot efficiently degrade. In contrast, inorganic phosphate is extensively used as a food in modern industrialized food production, including ultra-processed foods, fast food, and carbonated beverages []. Unlike organic phosphate, inorganic phosphate salts are not bound to proteins; they dissociate rapidly in the intestinal lumen and are absorbed via non-saturable paracellular pathways with an exceptionally high bioavailability of nearly 90% to 100% []. Current clinical guidelines, such as those from the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) and European authorities, recommend a daily allowance (RDA) of approximately 700 mg of phosphorus for healthy adults to maintain systemic mineral balance []. However, large-scale population-based studies (such as the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, NHANES) reveal that actual dietary intake in modern societies significantly exceeds these recommendations, frequently reaching 1200 to 1400 mg/day in Western populations. This substantial population-based dietary oversupply is driven primarily by the hidden consumption of inorganic phosphate additives. While observational studies suggest an association between high dietary phosphorus intake and adverse chronic outcomes, caution is required when inferring direct causality, as interventional evidence on hard clinical endpoints remains limited [].