Concentrations of trace elements in sera of newborns, young infants, and adults
- 1 May 1999
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Biological Trace Element Research
- Vol. 68 (2), 121-135
- https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02784401
Abstract
Concentrations of trace elements in newborns, infants, and adults may be significantly different from each other. Serum trace element reference ranges for different age groups are of value for diagnostic purposes. Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry was applied to the determination of the 21 trace elements Ba, Be, Bi, Ca, Cd, Co, Cs, Cu, La, Li, Hg, Mg, Mn, Mo, Pb, Rb, Sb, Sn, Sr, Tl, and Zn in a total of 117 sera of individuals representing different age groups. After microwave-assisted acid digestion with high-purity reagents, 20 umbilical cord sera, 5 sera of fully breast-fed infants, 6 sera of formula-fed infants, 66 sera of patients suffering internal diseases, and 20 sera of healthy blood donors were analyzed for trace elements. One serum and two whole-blood reference materials were analyzed for quality control. Experimental concentrations were in good agreement with certified values. Umbilical cord serum concentrations of the essential elements Ca, Co, Cu, and Mg and of the nonessential and toxic elements Ba, Be, Li, Pb, and Sb were elevated compared to the elemental concentrations in the sera of infants and adults. Serum levels of Ba, Ca, Co, Mn, Pb, and Sb of infants were much higher and serum Cu was significantly lower than in adults. Serum Cu increased significantly with age (newborns: 353 Μg/L; infants: 755 Μg/L; healthy adults: 810 Μg/L), whereas for other trace elements no age-dependence could be established.Keywords
This publication has 22 references indexed in Scilit:
- Reference Values for the Trace Elements Copper, Manganese, Selenium, and Zinc in the Serum / Plasma of Children, Adolescents, and AdultsJournal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology, 1997
- Trace Elements in Pleural EffusionsJournal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology, 1997
- Zinc levels in human milk and umbilical cord bloodScience of The Total Environment, 1996
- Zinc and copper in infants fed breast-milk or different formulaEuropean Journal of Pediatrics, 1994
- Aspects of neonatal metabolism of trace metalsActa Paediatrica, 1994
- Iron, zinc, copper and selenium status of breast‐fed infants and infants fed trace element fortified milk‐based infant formulaActa Paediatrica, 1994
- The Assessment of Reference Values for Elements in Human Biological Tissues and Fluids: A Systematic ReviewCritical Reviews in Analytical Chemistry, 1994
- Trace elements and mineral requirements for very low birth weight infants in rickets of prematurityEarly Human Development, 1992
- Trace element reference values in tissues from inhabitants of the European community I. A study of 46 elements in urine, blood and serum of Italian subjectsScience of The Total Environment, 1990
- Low Levels of Zinc in Hair, Anorexia, Poor Growth, and Hypogeusia in ChildrenPediatric Research, 1972