Hepcidin Levels and Iron Homeostasis During Early Infancy | ||
| Bulletin of Egyptian Society for Physiological Sciences | ||
| Article 10, Volume 29, Issue 1, June 2009, Pages 113-124 PDF (179.03 K) | ||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||
| DOI: 10.21608/besps.2009.36332 | ||
| Authors | ||
| Saeed Hammad* 1; Mahmoud El-Gharieb2; Maher Abdel- Hafez3 | ||
| 1Department of Pediatrics, Batnan Medical Center, Lybia | ||
| 2Department of Physiology , Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University | ||
| 3Department of Pediatric, faculty of Medicine, Tanta University | ||
| Abstract | ||
| Background: Iron status is usually assessed in children and adults through the measurement of the concentrations of serum ferritin (SF) and serum soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR), which reflect storage iron and cellular iron needs, respectively. However SF and sTfR are difficult to interpret in infants. Hepcidinliver hormone- is a negative regulator of iron absorption and mobilization. Objective: We aimed in this study to characterize changes in hepcidin levels in healthy breast fed infants in correlation to the dynamic change in iron status in this young age. Patients and methods: 106 healthy breast fed infant were included in the study and followed from 4 to 9 mo. Iron supplementation was given to infants with iron deficiency (ID) at 6 mo till the age of 9 mo. Blood samples at 4, 6, and 9 months of age were analyzed for hemoglobin (Hb), mean cell volume (MCV), zinc protoporphyrin (ZPP), plasma ferritin, and transferrin receptors (TfR). Urinary hepcidin was measure at 4, 6 and 9 mo. Results: In unsupplemented infants, Hb, MCV and ferritin means decreased, whereas ZPP and sTfR means increased from 4 to 6 mo. Urinary hepcidin levels were decreasing with age between 4 and 6 months. We found significant urinary hepcidin deficiency in ID group at 6mo. Changes of Hb levels after iron supplementation were correlated significantly to urinary hepcidin at the age of 6 mo (r=-0.756), less significantly correlated to sTfR(r=394) and serum ferritin (r= 32). Conclusions: Iron deficiency in healthy full term infants is less common at 4 mo but iron deficiency increased after that. Not all ID infants will manifest by anemia and not all anemic infants are iron deficient. Urinary hepcidin could help to early diagnose infants with true iron deficiency. | ||
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