Integrated biochemical alterations in migraine: diamine oxidase, paraoxonase-1, thyroid function, oxidative stress, and lipid profile

Migraine headaches are primary headaches that occur repeatedly and are marked by moderate to severe pulsating pain on one side of the head. It is associated with neurovascular, oxidative, endocrine, and metabolic alterations. This case-control study investigated an integrated biochemical profile in migraine patients with and without aura compared with healthy controls.

A total of 120 participants were included: 40 migraine patients with aura, 40 migraine patients without aura, and 40 healthy controls. Serum diamine oxidase (DAO), paraoxonase-1 (PON1), thyroid-related markers, oxidative stress indices, and lipid profile parameters were measured. Age did not differ significantly among the studied groups.

DAO and PON1 levels were markedly reduced in both migraine groups compared with controls, while total oxidant status and oxidative stress index were increased and total antioxidant capacity was decreased. Thyroid-related markers showed significant but more modest alterations, and lipid profile parameters were elevated in migraine patients compared with controls. Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed excellent discriminatory performance for DAO and PON1 within the current dataset, whereas thyroid-related markers showed only modest performance.

The findings suggest that migraine is associated with a combined biochemical pattern involving altered histamine metabolism, impaired antioxidant defense, oxidative imbalance, thyroid-related changes, and lipid disturbances. Further validation in larger, independent, and clinically heterogeneous cohorts is required before these markers can be considered for diagnostic application. The authors are grateful to all study participants, including migraine patients and healthy volunteers, for their contribution to this research.

N.B.J. and A.M.N.J. thank Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad, Iraq, for its approval and support of this work. This research was supported by the Arab-German Young Academy of Sciences and the Humanities (AGYA). AGYA is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology, and Space (BMFTR, 01DL20003).

Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad, 14022, Iraq Norhan Bassim Jassim & Abdulkadir M. Jassim Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Sultan Qaboos University, 123, Muscat, Oman Correspondence to Abdulkadir M. The present study was approved by the ethics committee of the College of Science, Mustansiriyah University, Baghdad, Iraq (BCSMU/0925/0038 C, September 2025).