Determination of Select Trace Elements in Hair of College Students in Jinzhou, China

Abstract

Select trace elements (Fe, Cu, Zn, Al, K, Na, Ba, Sb, Pb, As) were determined by ICP-AES after nitric acid-perchloric acid wet digestion in samples of scalp hair of University students. Some metal-to-metal intercorrelations were found. The more often the hair was dyed and marcelled, the higher were the contents of iron, copper, potassium, sodium, barium, lead, and arsenic. Copper levels increased with the degree of myopia, while zinc, lead, aluminum, iron, and potassium decreased with the myopic degree. Copper, zinc, iron, and arsenic levels were lower in white hair, while sodium and lead were higher. The levels of the elements were generally higher in the hair samples of students who drink and smoke. The hair metal contents were found to be influenced by alcohol use and smoking. Hair element analyses thus could be used as noninvasive means of detecting unhealthy lifestyles in college students.

Concentration of Zinc, Copper, Selenium, Manganese, and Cu/Zn Ratio in Hair of Children and Adolescents with Myopia

“…In the current study, we did not observe significant differences in Cu levels in the hair of patients with myopia when compared to the control group (Table 3). On the contrary, students with myopia in the research of Cai had higher levels of Cu in the hair and there was a positive correlation between the Cu level and refractive error [28]. Due to higher levels of Zn in the hair of myopic children, surprisingly, Cu/Zn ratio was significantly smaller in the myopic group of our research.…”

“…Homeostatic mechanisms quickly balance out zinc insufficiency in blood; therefore, the determined levels of Zn in blood serum can differ from the amount of the element in hair samples [29]. Cai did research on the levels of zinc and copper in the hair of 20–24 years old students in Jinzhou, China [28]. He observed that zinc levels in hair of students with myopia were lower than their healthy peers.…”

“…Lysyl oxidase takes part in the spontaneous formation of chain cross links in scleral collagen, regulates fibrillogenesis, and is essential for correct collagen fibril shape formation [33, 34]. Normal Cu metabolism is essential to ocular tissue and is associated with myopic refractive error development [28]. In an experimental study, sub-Tenon's capsule injection of Cu compounds resulted in increased scleral Cu concentration, activation of collagen biosynthesis processes, and improved scleral tissue elasticity [12].…”

“…Research is being made on using hair as a biological material in diagnosing many diseases, such as Parkinson's disease, arterial hypertension, schizophrenia, Down's syndrome, and autism [18–21, 25–27]. Unfortunately, only one research has been carried out for the determination of trace elements in the hair of patients with myopia [28].…”

Determination of exposure to lead of subjects from southwestern Poland by human hair analysis

“…In our work, the content of lead was 17 % higher in hair of subjects who declared smoking versus non-smoking but the difference was not statistically significant. The increased lead level in hair of smoking subjects in this study was lower than the results reported by Mortada et al (2002), for 28–40 years male (51 %; 8.09 ± 0.86 and 5.37 ± 3.41 mg kg −1 for smokers and nonsmokers, respectively), Massadeh et al (2011), for 15–30 years male (51 %; 7.3 and 11 mg kg −1 ) and for 31–60 years male (58 %; 5.9 and 9.3 mg kg −1 ), Sukumar and Subramanian (2003), for 7–30 years students (87 %; 7.5 ± 1.3 and 4.0 ± 0.3 mg kg −1 ), Cai (2011), for 20–24 students (approximately three times; 13.92 and 5.14 mg kg −1 ), Kazi et al (2009) for 25–55 subjects (27 %; 8.7 ± 1.8 and 6.85 ± 1.55 mg kg −1 ). Additionally, smoking subjects who consumed lemons had over two times lower lead level as compared to smoking subjects who did not eat lemons ( n  = 41; 1.56 ± 1.12 mg kg −1 and n  = 19; 3.79 ± 5.80 mg kg −1 , respectively).…”