Association Between Serum Ferritin Levels in Early Pregnancy and Thyroid Function and Pregnancy Outcomes in Chinese Population.

Background: The relationship of iron deficiency and thyroid hormone has been researched a lot among pregnant or other healthy population. However, invisible iron deficiency, namely shortage of serum ferritin (sFer) level, has been barely investigated among Chinese pregnant women. This study aimed to explore the effects of sFer status on thyroid function and pregnancy outcomes in a population-based upper first-class hospital. Methods: A total of 781 singleton pregnant women of gestation in Shanghai General Hospital took part in this retrospective cohort study. The participants were divided into four groups by quartiles of serum ferritin levels (Q1-4). Binary logistic regressions were used to examine the strength of association between the different traits and the serum ferritin (sFer) quartiles separately, where Q1 (lowest ferritin quartile) was taken as the base reference. One-way ANOVA was adopted to compare the averages of the different variables across sFer quartiles. Categorical measures were compared by Fisher exact test or chi-square test. Results: As the sFer concentration rises, incidence of premature birth (15.8%vs 12.3% vs 9.20% vs 6.20% p = 0.016) as well as threatened miscarriage (14.8% vs 7.2% vs 8.70% vs 6.70% p = 0.021) presented a downward trend. Compared with the other sFer group, subjects of the low sFer group were older, more often to be found to have lower serum γT3 and FT4 levels in early pregnancy but not in middle pregnancy. Conclusion: sFer concentration in the first trimester can affect thyroid function. The correction of invisible iron deficiency with inadequate sFer status prior to pregnancy or during early pregnancy is imperative, not only to prevent anemia, but also for maintaining optimum thyroid function and normal fetal development. For clinicians, sFer status of pregnant women should be attached great importance apart from attention to iron level.

Association of gestational hypertriglyceridemia, diabetes with serum ferritin levels in early pregnancy: a retrospective cohort study.

Aims: Previous studies showed conflicting results linking body iron stores to the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and dyslipidemia. We aim to investigate the relationship between serum ferritin, and the prevalence of GDM, insulin resistance (IR) and hypertriglyceridemia. Methods: A total of 781 singleton pregnant women of gestation in Shanghai General Hospital took part in the retrospective cohort study conducted. The participants were divided into four groups by quartiles of serum ferritin levels (Q1-4). Binary logistic regressions were used to examine the strength of association between the different traits and the serum ferritin (sFer) quartiles separately, where Q1 (lowest ferritin quartile) was taken as the base reference. One-way ANOVA was adopted to compare the averages of the different variables across Sfer quartiles. Results: Compared with the lowest serum ferritin quartile (Q1), the ORs for Q3, and Q4 in our population were 1.79 (1.01-2.646), and 2.07 (1.089-2.562) respectively and this trend persisted even after adjusted for age and pre-BMI. Women with higher serum ferritin quartile including Q3 (OR=2.182, 95%CI=1.729-5.527, P=0.003) and Q4(OR=3.137, 95%CI=3.137-8.523, P<0.01)are prone to develop insulin resistance disorders. No significant difference was observed between sFer concentrations and gestational hypertriglyceridemia(GTG) in the comparison among these 4 groups across logistic regressions but TG was found positively correlated with increased ferritin values in the second trimester. Conclusions: Increased concentrations of plasma ferritin in early pregnancy are significantly and positively associated with insulin resistance and incidence of GDM but not gestational dyslipidemia. Further clinical studies are warranted to determine whether it is necessary to encourage pregnant women to take iron supplement as a part of routine antenatal care.

A Highly Sensitive Immunosorbent Assay Based on Biotinylated Graphene Oxide and the Quartz Crystal Microbalance.

A high-sensitivity flow-based immunoassay is reported based on a gold-coated quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) chip functionalized directly in the QCM without requiring covalent conjugation steps. Specifically, the irreversible adsorption of a biotinylated graphene oxide-avidin complex followed by loading of a biotinylated capture antibody is applied to avoid more complex conventional surface modification chemistries and enable chip functionalization and sensing all within the QCM instrument. The resulting immunosensors exhibit significantly lower nonspecific protein adsorption and stronger signal for antigen sensing relative to simple avidin-coated sensors. Reproducible quantification of rabbit IgG concentrations ranging from 0.1 ng/mL to 10 µg/mL (6 orders of magnitude) can be achieved depending on the approach used to quantify the binding with simple mass changes used to detect higher concentrations and a horseradish peroxidase-linked detection antibody that converts its substrate to a measurable precipitate used to detect very low analyte concentrations. Sensor fabrication and assay performance take ∼5 h in total, which is on par with or faster than other techniques. Quantitative sensing is possible in the presence of complex protein mixtures, such as human plasma. Given the broad availability of biotinylated capture antibodies, this method offers both an easy and flexible platform for the quantitative sensing of a variety of biomolecule targets.

An inkjet-printed bioactive paper sensor that reports ATP through odour generation.

We describe an inkjet printed paper-based sensor that reports ATP by the enzyme catalysed hydrolysis of S-methyl-L-cysteine generating an odour (methyl mercaptan) that is easily detectable by the human nose.

Turning tryptophanase into odor-generating biosensors.

An odor-based sensor system that exploits the metabolic enzyme tryptophanase (TPase) as the key component is reported. This enzyme is able to convert an odorless substrate like S-methyl-L-cysteine or L-tryptophan into the odorous products methyl mercaptan or indole. To make a biosensor, TPase was biotinylated so that it could be coupled with a molecular recognition element, such as an antibody, to develop an ELISA-like assay. This method was used for the detection of an antibody present in nM concentrations by the human nose. TPase can also be combined with the enzyme pyridoxal kinase (PKase) for use in a coupled assay to detect adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP). When ATP is present in the low µM concentration range, the coupled enzymatic system generates an odor that is easily detectable by the human nose. Biotinylated TPase can be combined with various biotin-labeled molecular recognition elements, thereby enabling a broad range of applications for this odor-based reporting system.

Modeling the inactivation of Salmonella typhimurium by dense phase carbon dioxide in carrot juice.

The inactivation of Salmonella typhimurium inoculated into acidified carrot juice subjected to dense phase carbon dioxide (DPCD) was investigated. The pressures in the study were 10, 20 and 30 MPa, the temperatures were 32, 37 and 42 degrees C, and the treatment time was 5-90 min. The inactivation effect of DPCD was enhanced by increasing pressure and temperature. The sigmoid inactivation curves were characterized with the lag phase, exponential inactivation phase, and resistant phase. The inactivation curves were fitted to the modified Gompertz equation and the modified Logistic equation, the modified Gompertz equation was superior since its lowest residual sum of squares (RSS) was lower although there was no significant difference of goodness-of-fit between both models as indicated by F-test. The lambda (the duration of the lag phase) and t(4-D) (the time necessary to achieve 4-log cycles reduction) decreased with increasing pressure or temperature. The k(dm) (the maximum specific value of the inactivation rate, min(-1)) increased with increasing temperatures, and decreased with increasing pressures. The activation energy (Ea) and the activation volume (Va) necessary for inactivating S. typhimurium by DPCD were 19.06-29.39 kJ mol(-1) and 18.89-58.27 cm(3) mol(-1).

Spectrophotometric determination of vitamin B1 in a pharmaceutical formulation using triphenylmethane acid dyes.

A highly sensitive colour reaction has been developed, based on the fact that vitamin B(1) reacted with a triphenylmethane acid dye such as thymol blue, bromothymol blue, bromophenol blue, bromocresol green, phenol red or cresol red to form an ion-association complex in a weak-base aqueous solution in the presence of some solubilization agents e.g. polyvinyl alcohol, emulgent OP, Triton X-100 or Tween-20. The wavelengths of maximum absorbance of the six ion-association complexes were between 420 and 450 nm, and fading reaction appeared at the longer wavelength and the maximum fading wavelengths were between 550 and 620 nm. The reactions had highly sensitivities and their apparent molar absorptivities of the colour reactions were (0.82-1.65) x 10(5) l mol(-1) cm(-1) and those of fading reactions were (1.26-3.92) x 10(5) l mol(-1) cm(-1) depending on the different dye systems. The composition ratio of the ion-association complex was vitamin B(1):dye = 1:1 as established by Job's and equilibrium shift methods. The method had good selectivity and could be applied to direct spectrophotometric determination of vitamin B(1) in aqueous phase without using organic solvent extraction. Therefore, the method was simple and rapid. The colour reaction mechanism was discussed with the quantum chemistry method.

Resonance Rayleigh-scattering method for the determination of vitamin B1 with methyl orange.

In a pH 2.3-3.0 acid medium, the resonance Rayleigh scattering (RRS) intensity is greatly enhanced when vitamin B, reacts with Methyl Orange to form an ion-association complex. The maximum RRS peak appears at 588 nm, another higher peak is at 403 nm and there are two smaller RRS peaks at 800 nm and 288 nm. The RRS intensity is directly proportional to the concentration of vitamin B, in the range of 0-400 ng ml(-1). The method has high sensitivity and the detection limit (3sigma) for vitamin B1 is 7.2 ng ml(-1). The effects of coexisting substances on the determination of vitamin B, were investigated, and the results show that this method has good selectivity and can be applied to the direct determination of vitamin B1 in composite vitamin B tablets and multivitamin tablet samples.