Comparison of maternal serum and neonatal cord blood levels of zinc in relation to birth weight and period of gestation

Background: Women are at increased risk of zinc deficiency during pregnancy because of high fetal requirements for zinc. Severe maternal zinc deficiency has been associated with poor fetal growth, spontaneous abortion and congenital malformations (i.e., anencephaly), whereas milder forms of zinc deficiency have been associated with low birth weight (LBW), intrauterine growth retardation, and preterm delivery. However, the research relating maternal zinc status and birth weight has not produced consistent results. This study has been undertaken to confirm the association between maternal serum zinc concentration and birth weight and period of gestation in setting like India.Methods: A total of 100 new-borns were included and divided into two groups, the ‘study group’ had babies with birth weight <2.5 kg and control group’ with babies >2.5 kg birth weight. Cord blood from the new-borns and serum samples of mothers were collected and the zinc levels were measured.Results: The correlation of cord blood and the maternal serum zinc levels were assessed in relation to birth weight and the gestational age. The results were compared between the two groups. The difference in values between the two groups was statistically significant, maternal serum zinc levels and birth weight (84.78±21.62 vs 66.04±18.66) (‘P’ value 0.04), cord blood zinc levels and birth weight (98.44±22.59 vs 79.78±19.54) (‘P’ value <0.001). The maternal serum and cord blood zinc was compared between the preterm and term; the results were statistically significant.Conclusions: The maternal and cord blood levels of zinc are correlated well with the birth weight and the gestational age at delivery. Supplementation of zinc during gestation might help reduce the incidence of IUGR and the risk of prematurity.

Evaluation of blood and tooth element status in asthma cases: a preliminary case–control study

Background Asthma is a common respiratory disorder; some data were present on the correlation between increased levels of trace elements and the risk of asthma development. It was aimed to evaluate the levels of 13 selected blood and tooth elements (magnesium, phosphorus, calcium, chromium, manganese, iron, copper, zinc, strontium, molybdenum, cadmium, lead, mercury) in a well-controlled asthma group and the control group. Methods During the study period, 17 asthma patients and 26 age and gender-matched healthy children donated shed deciduous teeth having neither decay nor filling and enrolled for the study. The element levels in blood and teeth matrixes were analyzed with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Differences in blood and tooth elements in groups were evaluated with generalized linear models after adjusting confounding factors. Results After adjusting the child’s “z scores of body mass index for age”, history of iron deficiency anemia, and status of parental smoking, the generalized linear model revealed significantly lower tooth magnesium levels, lower blood zinc levels, and lower blood zinc/copper ratio in the asthma group than the control group (p = 0.042, p = 0.034, p = 0.002, respectively). Other studied elements for tooth and blood matrixes were similar in groups. Conclusion Our study revealed some differences in tooth and blood element levels in the asthma group. Further studies on zinc and magnesium levels of severe asthma cases are necessary for the interpretation of the results.

Antioxidant status, and blood zinc and copper concentrations in dogs with uncomplicated babesiosis due to Babesia canis infections

Introduction The aim of the study was to demonstrate a link between uncomplicated Babesia canis infection in dogs and blood concentrations of zinc and copper and erythrocytic antioxidant defence – activities of glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT). Material and Methods The study was based on 15 naturally occurring cases of canine babesiosis with anorexia, pyrexia, depression, pale mucous membrane, splenomegaly and dark red urine. Microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained peripheral blood smears and the results of PCR confirmed B. canis infection. Seven apparently healthy dogs brought in for either a check-up or vaccination were used for comparison. Results The levels of the erythrocytic antioxidant enzymes - SOD and CAT - were significantly higher in the infected dogs than in cytologically negative dogs. The levels of blood micronutrients were significantly lower in the infected dogs (0.478 μg of zinc per mL vs 1.241 μg/mL and 0.722 μg of copper per mL vs 1.392 μg/mL). Conclusion Oxidative stress can be posited as one of the mechanisms leading to anaemia in dogs with babesiosis, and therefore antioxidant biomarker and copper and zinc concentrations could be used as indicators of disease severity and prognostic markers.

Effect of Furosemide and Spironolactone on urinary zinc excretion in rats

Background: Zinc deficiency is associated with numerous diseases including hypertension, diabetes, obesity, immune dysregulation, cancer, depression and congenital anomalies. There are many reasons of zinc deficiency including some medications. If zinc supplementation is used with these medicines than many diseases can be prevented. Subjects and methods: This experimental study was planned to observe the effect of single diuretic dose of furosemide and spironolactone on zinc urinary excretion and blood levels in normal rats. Eighteen adult healthy male Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups. After saline load rats were given distilled water, furosemide (10 mg/kg) and spironolactone (20 mg/kg) as single oral dose. Blood and urine samples were collected after five hours and analysed for zinc concentration by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Results: Single oral dose of furosemide and spironolactone highly significantly increased urinary zinc excretion (p-value <0.001 vs normal control), and increased blood zinc level (p-value <0.001 vs. normal control). Value of both variables were significantly higher in furosemide-treated group (p-value <0.001 vs. furosemide-treated). Conclusion: Results of this research conclude that furosemide and spironolactone increase urinary zinc excretion when used for short period. It is also postulated that blood zinc concentration is not reliable measure to assess the zinc status of the body because its level shows compensatory rise during deficiency states.

Effect of Maternal Nutritional Status and Mode of Delivery on Zinc and Iron Stores at Birth

Zinc and iron deficiencies among infants aged under 6 months may be related with nutrient store at birth. This study aimed to investigate the association between zinc and iron stores at birth with maternal nutritional status and intakes during pregnancy. 117 pregnant women were enrolled at the end of second trimester and followed until delivery. Clinical data during pregnancy, including pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and at parturition were collected from medical record. Zinc and iron intakes were estimated from a food frequency questionnaire. Serum zinc and ferritin were determined in maternal blood at enrollment and cord blood. Mean cord blood zinc and ferritin were 10.8 ± 2.6 µmol/L and 176 ± 75.6 µg/L, respectively. Cord blood zinc was associated with pre-pregnancy BMI (adj. ß 0.150; p = 0.023) and serum zinc (adj. ß 0.115; p = 0.023). Cord blood ferritin was associated with pre-pregnancy BMI (adj. ß −5.231; p = 0.009). Cord blood zinc and ferritin were significantly higher among those having vaginal delivery compared to cesarean delivery (adj. ß 1.376; p = 0.007 and 32.959; p = 0.028, respectively). Maternal nutritional status and mode of delivery were significantly associated with zinc and iron stores at birth. Nutrition during preconception and pregnancy should be ensured to build adequate stores of nutrients for infants.

Lower Levels of Blood Zinc Associated with Intradialytic Hypertension in Maintenance Hemodialysis Patients

Intradialytic hypertension (iHTN) has been related with an increased risk of mortality, with imbalances in trace elements being frequent in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationships between the levels of blood trace elements and iHTN in MHD patients. A total of 144 MHD patients were enrolled in September, 2019 (66 females; 5616 hemodialysis treatments), with a mean age of 64.33 ± 13.39 years and median vintage of 33.50 (16.25–57.50) months. Patients exhibited an average peridialytic systolic blood pressure (SBP) change of − 4.18 ± 20.22 mm Hg in the next 3 months. Thirty-four (23.6%) patients had persistent iHTN (piHTN). These patients were characterized by older age, higher rate of hypozincemia, and modified Charlson comorbidity score, whereas lower blood zinc and hemoglobin, at the time of their recruitment. No significant difference in the levels of other blood trace elements was observed between groups. A general linear mixed (GLM) model showed that with every mg/L point lower mean blood zinc at baseline, the peridialytic SBP change was increased by 4.524 mm Hg (P < 0.001). Binary logistic model in modulate of the GLM model revealed that the lower level of blood zinc was associated with piHTN (OR = 0.433, 95 % CI 0.295 to 0.637, P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis confirmed both above results. Our study indicated that lower blood zinc was independently associated with piHTN in patients undergoing MHD, but prospective studies with larger population are still needed.