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Biomedical subjects

H M Berger

Publications and source records attributed to H M Berger.

79 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1975

Effect of gestational age and intrauterine nutrition on plasma transferrin and iron in the newborn.

Plasma concentrations of transferrin and iron were measured in the cord blood of babies of varying gestational age and birthweight. Tranferrin and iron concentrations rose with gestational age; values in light-for-dates babies did not differ from those in babies of appropriate weight. In the last trimester of pregnancy plasma transferrin and iron concentrations in the fetus are affected by the maturity of the pregnancy but are independent of the nutritional status of the fetus. The low transferrin levels, particularly in preterm babies, may caution the use of iron especially by the parenteral route in the neonatal period, but we are wary of abandoning on this evidence alone the well tried clinical custom of giving oral iron to preterm babies who are not breast fed.

Fetal Blood↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Diminished protection against copper-induced lipid peroxidation by cord blood plasma of preterm and term infants.

BACKGROUND: Blood plasma of neonates is less able to inhibit iron induced lipid peroxidation than plasma of older patients. Copper, also a powerful pro-oxidant, may accumulate in ill babies because of excess intake or decreased excretion. We assessed in vitro the ability of plasma of neonates to inhibit copper induced peroxidation damage. METHODS: Peroxidation of phospholipid liposomes, induced by CuCl2, was measured with a thiobarbituric acid assay. The ability of plasma from venous blood of adults and cord blood of babies to inhibit peroxidation was compared. The levels of the copper binding plasma proteins, albumin and ceruloplasmin, were also measured. RESULTS: Protection against copper induced lipid peroxidation was much higher with adult plasma compared to neonatal plasma. Despite their lower albumin and ceruloplasma levels the protection by the plasma of preterm babies was higher than that of the term babies. CONCLUSIONS: At birth, babies have a limited ability to inhibit copper induced oxidative damage in vitro. Postnatal studies are needing to assess the influence of maturation and nutrition on these findings and their relevance in diseases induced by reactive oxygen species.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Allopurinol dosage and effect on ischemia-reperfusion damage in elective and acute aortic surgery.

To study the effect of a safe dosage of allopurinol on ischemia-reperfusion damage following aortic surgery, 24 patients undergoing either elective or acute aortic reconstruction, were randomized to receive allopurinol or placebo, yielding four groups: elective/placebo (EP), elective/allopurinol (EA), acute/placebo (AP) and acute/allopurinol (AA). Blood concentrations of allopurinol, oxypurinol, uric acid, malondialdehyde, ascorbic acid, and 99mTc-albumin were determined perioperatively. Adequate concentrations and biochemical activity of allopurinol and oxypurinol were obtained, without side-effects. Malondialdehyde did not increase perioperatively, but was significantly higher in acute surgery than in elective surgery intraoperatively. Yet, ascorbic acid levels and 99mTc-albumin disappearance were not different from groups EP and EA. No influence of allopurinol was found on malondialdehyde, ascorbic acid and 99mTc-albumin. An influence of allopurinol may have been obscured, as patients in group AA were more hypotensive than in group AP. In conclusion, adequate allopurinol concentration can be obtained with a safe dosage in abdominal aortic surgery. Signs of ischemia-reperfusion injury were found in acute surgery, not in elective surgery. Therefore, further investigation on the clinical effect of allopurinol is only useful in acute aortic surgery.

Aged↗