[Behavior of alpha 1-acid glycoprotein in the premature infant]. / Comportamento dell'alfa 1 glicoproteina acida nel bambino dismaturo.

The interest of clinicians has recently turned to the study of acute phase proteins whose determination, especially in the newborn, offers not only diagnostic information, but also information about prognosis. For many years we have been interested in the study of orosomucoid behaviour in newborn term babies and in low weight premature babies. For this purpose 113 patients were tested, divided into different gestational age groups, from which samples were taken immediately after birth, on the following days and before beginning any kind of treatment to show the behaviour of acid glycoprotein until normal average values were reached. Statistical processing of the data showed an average orosomucoid value in newborn term babies in perfect agreement with the literature. There was correlation among gestational age, weight at birth and orosomucoid concentration, which peaked more quickly the greater the gestational age and weight at birth. Thereafter, the concentration decreased until it stabilised at average term newborn values.

[Binding capacity of albumin: comparison of electrophoretic and spectrophotometric methods]. / Capacità legante dell'albumina: confronto tra metodo elettroforetico e metodo spettrofotometrico.

In the present study we intended to prove the reliability of the spectrophotometric method proposed by Ash et al. for the detection of the bilirubin binding capacity in the sera of icteric newborns, comparing it with the electrophoretic method. 40 sera, in which the value of the bilirubin was included between 0.10 and 26.24 mg/dl, with a distribution of values of bilirubin binding capacity between 0 and 16 mg/dl, were examined. The values of bilirubin binding capacity fixed by the spectrophotometric method are expressed as delta A, included between 70 and 245. The Authors feed the spectrophotometric method is unreliable in routine laboratory practice, because it does not allow an accurate identification of newborns exposed to risk of kernicterus.

Age-related changes in the prevalence of precipitating antibodies to BK virus in infants and children.

Nearly 1000 sera from children were tested by immunoelectro-osmophoresis against BK virus, and age-specific prevalence rates were estimated from birth until the age of 12 years. Declining rates during the first 12 months showed the waning of passive immunity, which at birth reflects the mother's immune status. The changes of prevalence suggested that the peak incidence of primary infections occurred at about 2 years, with an estimated peak annual rate of 24.6%.

[Binding capacity of albumin: comparison of the chromatographic method and electrophoretic method]. / Capacità legante dell'albumina: confronto tra metodo cromatografico e metodo elettroforetico.

In the present study we intended to prove the reliability of the electrophoretic method proposed by Athanassiadis et al. [2] for the detection of the bilirubin binding capacity in the sera of icteric newborns, comparing it with the chromatographic method. 35 sera, in which the value of the bilirubin was included between 5 and 20 mg/dl, with a distribution of values of bilirubin binding capacity between 0 and 16 mg/dl, had been examined. The results obtained proved a perfect agreement between these two methods: the Authors prefer the electrophretic method, because it consents a more exact estimation of the bilirubin binding capacity of the serum.