IMR Press / FBE / Volume 2 / Issue 1 / DOI: 10.2741/E62

Frontiers in Bioscience-Elite (FBE) is published by IMR Press from Volume 13 Issue 2 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Frontiers in Bioscience.

Article
Activin A in asphyxiated full-term newborns with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy
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1 Department of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
2 Department of Cardiac Surgery, S. Donato Milanese University Hospital, San Donato Milanese, Italy
3 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, “Cesare Arrigo” Children Hospital, Alessandria, Italy, Perinatal Research Laboratory
4 Department of Biochemistry, University of Catania, Catania, Italy

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

 

Front. Biosci. (Elite Ed) 2010, 2(1), 36–42; https://doi.org/10.2741/E62
Published: 1 January 2010
Abstract

Activin-A is a protein over-expressed and secreted by the brain after neuronal destruction. We evaluated whether serum activin-A increases in asphyxiated full-term newborns (AFTNs) at risk of hypoxic-ischemic-encephalopathy (HIE). 105 consecutive infants (35 affected by perinatal asphyxia due to acute fetal distress; 70 healthy gestational-age matched newborns) underwent cranial assessment and neurologic examination at 12, 24 and 72 hours after birth and, on discharge from the hospital and; activin-A and monitoring laboratory variables assessment at birth. According to the occurrence of HIE within 7-days after birth, AFTNs were subdivided in Group A (n= 20; no/mild HIE with good prognosis) and Group B (n= 15; moderate/severe HIE with a greater risk of neurological handicap). Activin-A was significantly (P less than 0.0001) higher in Groups A and B than controls and highest (P less than 0.001) in Group B. At 0.66 ng/L activin-A achieved a sensitivity of 93.33% and a specificity of 96.63%, respectively, as HIE diagnostic test. These findings show that activin A increased in AFTNs with HIE before the appearance of related signs.

Keywords
Hypoxia
Brain Damage
Sensitivity
Specificity
Asphyxia
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