Vol 29, No 10 (2022)
ORIGINAL STUDY ARTICLES
Influence of individual and subpopulation factors on the concentration of major and trace elements in saliva
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The determination of the major and trace element composition of saliva could be a promising approach for non-invasive health monitoring. Such investigations are constrained, nevertheless, by the potential impact of several variables on the concentration of the elements.
AIM: To study the influence of individual and subpopulation factors of donors on the concentration of some major and trace elements in saliva.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The results of the determination of elements concentration (Ag, Al, Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, P, Pb, Si, Ti, Zn) in the whole saliva of 60 donors by direct (without digestion) analysis by arc atomic emission spectrometry using the dry residue technique are presented.
RESULTS: Distribution of concentrations in the sample for Al, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Si, Ti, and Zn showed a lognormal law; thus, the geometric mean or median is preferable as an indicator reflecting the average value. The distribution of Ca and P concentrations obeys the normal law. The concentration of Si and Ti is lower in the saliva of young men compared with women; the opposite pattern is observed for Mn. The mean Ag concentration in saliva is higher in the group of smokers than in non-smokers. Increase in the number of teeth affected by caries was correlated with an increase in concentrations of Cu, Al, and Zn in the saliva. For several analytes, interelement correlations were revealed, in particular, between the concentrations of Ca and P.
CONCLUSION: The study of such factors of influence enables clinicians to determine the normal concentration ranges of major and trace elements in each specific clinical case with greater accuracy.
689-698
Ethnic features of antioxidant status in men with infertility
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The study of the influence of ethnicity on human health is relevant at present.
AIM: To evaluate the antioxidant status of blood and ejaculation in infertile men in different ethnic groups.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Results of a survey of 222 Caucasians and 143 Mongoloids with pathozoospermia from infertile couples were used for the current retrospective analysis. The control groups comprised healthy men with realized reproductive function (97 Mongoloids and 104 Caucasians). The materials for biochemical studies were blood plasma and ejaculate. The analyses involved the use of spectrophotometric, fluorometric, and statistical methods of research. In the blood and ejaculate of the examined men, the total antioxidant activity was determined as an indicator characterizing the total activity of lipid peroxidation inhibitors and determining its buffer capacity, the concentration of fat-soluble vitamins retinol and α-tocopherol, and the level of superoxide dismutase.
RESULTS: The blood of Caucasian men with infertility was compared with that of fertile donors. The analysis revealed a decrease in the concentration of retinol by 27% (р=0.0001) and α-tocopherol by 25% (р <0.0001), as well as the activity of superoxide dismutase by 5% (р=0.0002). In the ejaculation of male Caucasians with infertility, we discovered a decrease in the concentration of α-tocopherol by 17% (р=0.0011) and an increase in total antioxidant activity by 21% (р=0,0004). The antioxidant defense system in Mongoloid men was characterized by an increase in retinol concentration by 24% (р=0.0002) and total antioxidant activity by 13% (р=0.0261), as well as a decrease in superoxide dismutase activity by 8% (р=0.0001). The results of the study of the antioxidant defense system in the ejaculate of Mongoloid men with infertility showed a decrease in the concentration of α-tocopherol by 15% (р=0,0322) and an increase in the level of total antioxidant activity by 17% (р=0.0432).
CONCLUSION: The data gathered allowed for an evaluation of the characteristics and the role of the antioxidant status in the general homeostasis of the organism of males of various ethnicity, who are infertile, despite being of reproductive age. A common mechanism for reproductive dysfunction present in the two ethnic groups is the lack of α-tocopherol concentration and a compensatory increase in the total antioxidant activity in the ejaculate, as well as a decrease in the activity of superoxide dismutase in the blood of the examined men. The blood of Mongoloids is characterized by a compensatory-adaptive increase in the total antioxidant activity and retinol concentration, which contrasts with Caucasians, whose antioxidant status of blood is characterized by the inhibition of the non-enzymatic link of antioxidant protection.
699-707
Bio substrate microelement concentrations in young men — residents of the Far North — under increased physical exercises
Abstract
BACKGROUND: High-level athletic competitions necessitate more strenuous physical activity and this upsets the body’s chemistry balance. Numerous mechanisms are in place during sports to adapt to regular physical activity, but as a result, the body is progressively stressed out as it experiences a high loss in the bio-elements associated with intense exercise.
AIM: to thoroughly analyze the chemical profiles of athletes residing in the city of Magadan, who have achieved great sporting success, and to identify the unique features of microelement concentrations in subjective samples (hair, whole blood).
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was conducted to analyze elemental pictures of high-level athletes in the city of Magadan who were between the ages of 19 and 25 (n=29). Age-matched men who showed usual levels of physical activity comprise the control group (n=22). Different biological substrates (hair and whole blood, among others) were examined to determine the most informative substrate for the identification of the most common types of chronic elemental imbalance. This was considered particularly important for further prevention of typical region-related disorders in the body chemistry by increasing functional reserves. Eighteen macro- and microelements were examined via atomic emission and mass spectrometric methods with inductively coupled argon plasma.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The athletes examined in the present study exhibited higher levels of Ca, Co, Fe, Se, and Zn in their hair samples and showed higher median concentrations of blood Na and P, and an excess levels of blood Mn, when compared with the subjects who had moderate levels of physical activity and whose blood examination showed higher values of K, Mg, Co, Fe, Se, the deficiency of Co, Cu, Zn, and Fe, and excess of Mg and Se.
CONCLUSION: However, data obtained in the present study did not enable us to explicitly draw inferences regarding sports-induced changes in the body microelement profile. In some cases, the elemental profile of athletes is similar to that of residents of Magadan and they show a typical northern type of deficiency in essential elements expressed in the hair. Notably, the frequency of hair deficits is frequently higher in young men who experience no increased exercise levels. Excessive toxic elements or heavy metals were not identified biological substrates examined in the present study. It was our understanding that long-term assessment of the athletes’ elemental imbalance — which is formed under intense physical activity — can be performed through spectral hair analysis. This is attributable to the fact that it is an accumulative bio substrate that shows no day-to-day fluctuations under changeable functional or psychoemotional states, as well as nutrition preferences.
709-719
Effect of chronic exposure on the concentration of NF-κB in peripheral blood lymphocytes
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The importance of this study is entrenched in the possibility that alterations in NF-κB-mediated intracellular signaling pathways could serve as the foundation for some pathogenetic mechanisms of radiation-induced carcinogenesis in chronically exposed individuals.
AIM: The objective of the study was to analyze the concentration of NF-κB transcription factor in lysates of peripheral blood lymphocytes of individuals exposed to chronic radiation during the implementation of carcinogenic effects of exposure.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study is applied analytically one time. 50 chronically exposed individuals were examined, whose average age was 73.7 years. The average accumulated radiation dose to the red bone marrow was 727.9±79.1 mGy; the average accumulated exposure dose to the thymus and peripheral lymphoid organs was 85.9±13.6 mGy. Participants from the main group were divided into three subgroups (n=18, n=16, n=16) depending on on the radiation dose (0.07–0.44 Gy; 0.45–0.84 Gy; 0.85–2.93 Gy respectively).
The difference between the comparison group and the main group in terms of age, sex, and ethnic composition was not statistically significant; also, an inclusion of 25 individuals who were not accidentally exposed was made. The intracellular concentration of NF-κB was ascertained by enzyme immunoassay in protein concentration-normalized (500 μg/mL) lysates of peripheral blood lymphocytes. Statistical data processing employed descriptive statistical methods, as well as Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, Student's t-test, Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney U-test, Jonсkheere–Terpstra test, and Spearman correlation analysis.
RESULTS: The median concentration of NF-κB in the main group was 34.5 pg/ml, and in the comparison group — 28.1 pg/ml. The differences in the indices in individuals from the main group relative to the comparison group were not statistically significant (р=0.360), as well as between different dose groups: 0.07–0.44 Gy — 31.5 pg/ml and 0.45–0.84 Gy — 32.4 pg/ml (р=0.431); 0.45–0.84 Gy — 32.4 pg/ml and 0.85–2.93 Gy — 38.5 pg/ml (р=0.692), 0.07–0.44 Gy and 0.85–2.93 Gy (р=0.534). No statistically significant differences were found between the dose groups and the comparison group (р=0.931). No dependences of NF-κB concentration on the exposure dose to the red bone marrow, thymus, and peripheral lymphoid organs, age, sex, and ethnicity of the examined individuals were detected.
CONCLUSION: The intracellular concentration of the transcription factor NF-κB does not differ significantly in individuals exposed to chronic radiation and individuals who were not accidentally exposed. Results indirectly confirm the involvement of NF-κB-mediated signaling pathways in the implementation of adaptive responses of the human body to chronic low-intensity radiation exposure.
721-730
School-Aged Children’s Physical Activity during the COVID-19 pandemic: results of the Russian part of the international study in 9 European countries
Abstract
AIM: Assessment of the School-Aged Children’s Physical Activity (PA) in the Russian Federation before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and its compliance with the WHO recommendations.
METHODS: This was a multi-national cross-sectional study. More than 24,000 children aged 6–18 years from nine European countries (Hungary, Spain, Portugal, Russian Federation, Poland, Italy, Slovenia, Germany, and Denmark) participated in the online survey. In the Russian Federation, the online survey was conducted from 28th January to 10th February 2021. The questionnaire was completed by 13,392 children or their parents from 64 Russian regions. In total, 11,763 respondents were included in the study, i.e., 50.8% boys (n=5985) and 49.2% girls (n=5778), 72% urban residents, and 28% rural residents. The mean age (M±SD) was 11.24±2.93 years.
The questionnaire contained five sections — questions about the socio-demographic data; physical activity, play, or sedentary behavior in the last seven days; comparison of the child's PA at the moment with PA during the first wave of COVID-19; comparison of the child's PA at the moment with the PA before the COVID-19 pandemic; compliance with WHO global recommendations on PA and sedentary lifestyle; questions about the socio-demographic background of the parent/guardian. Survey data were obtained via online platforms. Meeting the WHO Global Guidelines was defined as 60-minute MVPA per day for a week; total screen time of fewer than 2 hours per day. Data were presented as absolute values and percentages. Chi-Square (χ2) test was used to compare percentages to identify significant differences. A p-value of 0.05 indicated statistical significance.
RESULTS: Outcomes of this online survey revealed that only a small percentage of children followed the PA guidelines. Therefore, the proportion of children following the WHO recommendations was only 7.5%. An increase in screen time on weekdays during the pandemic was observed in 21.9% of the participants, and on weekends — 20.3%.
CONCLUSION: These results should be used to develop and implement targeted measures to prevent low levels FA among school-age children.
731-740
Heart rate variability in cross-country skiers with different level of maximum oxygen consumption
Abstract
AIM: This research aimed to study heart rate variability (HRV) in cross-country skiers with different levels of maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max).
MATERIALS AND METHODS: HRV analysis was carried out using the “Ecosan-2007” (“Medical Computer Systems,” Russia) complex in 52 cross-country skiers from the Komi Republic team (candidates for master of sports and master of sports of Russia). The “Oxycon Pro” ergospirometric system (“Erich Jaeger,” Germany) was used to calculate VO2max. To identify the HRV patterns in individuals with different levels of VO2max, volunteers were divided into two groups: with VO2max up to 4400 ml/min (n=27) and over 4400 ml/min (n=25). The Mann–Whitney U-test was used to ascertain whether the differences between groups were statistically significant. A Spearman correlation test was used to analyze the relationship between the VO2max and HRV.
RESULTS: Athletes with different levels of VO2max showed significant differences in several HRV indicators as follows: absolute values of LF and VLF waves, the relative value of HF waves, LF/HF, and IC indices. Correlation analysis indicated the presence of a significant negative correlation between the absolute values of VO2max and MxDMn, MxRMn, LF/HF, IC, power of LF, and LF%. VLF waves. Furthermore, a positive correlation was observed between VO2max and HF%. The relative values of the VO2max/kg showed a significant negative correlation with MxRMn, TP, LF, VLF, LF/HF, and IC; and positive with HF%.
CONCLUSION: In cross-country skiers, a significant correlation was identified between VO2max and HRV parameters. Compared to Athletes with lower VO2max, those with higher VO2max had a more efficient mode of heart rate regulation.
741-748
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