ABIKPA, EDIOMO NTIENSE and Covenant University, Theses (2021) LEVELS OF SOME HEAVY METALS AND ENZYME ACTIVITIES IN PRETERM INFANTS AND THEIR MOTHERS IN ABEOKUTA, OGUN STATE. Masters thesis, COVENANT UNIVERSITY.
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Abstract
Preterm birth is a major reproductive health issue in the world; additionally, preterm birth has long-term financial and medical consequences. It can be defined as the birth of an infant before the 37th week of pregnancy. An increasing body of evidence reveals that the mechanism by which preterm birth occurs still remains unknown; nonetheless, preterm birth is thought to be caused by a variety of factors including environmental factors. Toxic heavy metals such as cadmium and lead within the environment are well known factors that has been linked to premature birth around the globe. According to recent reports, these hazardous heavy metals could cause oxidative stress within the placenta by generating free radicals that disrupts antioxidant mechanisms and possibly resulting in premature birth. However, there are sparse data on the relationship between heavy metals and preterm births in Nigeria. This study measured Cadmium (Cd) and Lead (Pb) levels in 108 paired preterm maternal and newborn erythrocyte samples. The levels of the metals in mothers were significantly (p<0.05) higher than those in newborns. The mean (standard deviation) of lead in preterm mothers were 0.486 (0.5190) mg/l and that of preterm babies were 0.263 (0.4007) mg/l while cadmium was 0.658 (0.3948) mg/l in mothers and 0.378 (0.3225) mg/l in children. Activities of acetylcholinesterase, reduced glutathione (GSH), glutathione-s-transferase (GST) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in mother-child pair were also determined using UV spectrophotometric methods. Mothers had higher GSH levels, GST, SOD and acetylcholinesterase activities than children, with p values of 0.0682, 0.008, 0.037, 3.183 x 10-4, respectively. The results presented in this study showed that both Cd and Pb were present in mother-child pairs among women and children who had preterm birth and were admitted at the Federal medical center and Sacred Heart Hospital Abeokuta, Ogun State. Levels of these metals were above WHO recommended limits in humans. Future studies can be carried out to compare maternal, newborn, and postnatal levels of heavy metals and their possible effects.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | Q Science > Q Science (General) Q Science > QD Chemistry Q Science > QH Natural history > QH301 Biology |
| Divisions: | Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences > School of Biological Sciences |
| Depositing User: | Mrs Hannah Akinwumi |
| Date Deposited: | 27 Jun 2022 12:41 |
| Last Modified: | 27 Jun 2022 12:41 |
| URI: | http://eprints.covenantuniversity.edu.ng/id/eprint/16029 |
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