Distribution of calcium, iron, copper, and zinc in two portions of placenta of teenager and adult women.
The placenta is fundamental for fetal development. The aim of this study was to determine Ca, Fe, Cu, and Zn content in the fetal and maternal portions of the placentas of teenage and adult women. Measurement of the minerals was conducted using Synchrotron radiation total reflection X-ray fluorescence. Forty samples from the fetal portion of teenagers and adults and 40 samples from the maternal portion of teenagers and adults were analyzed. There were significant differences in the Ca and Cu concentrations of the placenta's maternal portion when compared to the fetal portion, for both teenagers and adults. There were differences in Fe and Zn concentrations only when comparing the maternal portion of placenta with the fetal portion of the adults. These results suggest important differences in mineral content based on the placental portion. No significant difference was observed between the minerals studied of the maternal portion of teenagers and adults; however, in the fetal portion, mineral concentrations were greater in adults than in teenagers. Therefore, the mineral concentration of the fetal portion of the placenta is influenced by the mother's age. If there is mineral's competition between the mother and fetus during pregnancy in adolescence due to the importance of these minerals in growth and development, then the mechanism and reason for it should be elucidated in future research. In addition, we believe that further research should be carried out on transporters of these minerals in the same portions of the placentas analyzed by our group, in teenagers and adults.
Laboratory of Biochemical Nutrition, Josué de Castro Institute of Nutrition, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. milenamoraes@ufrj.br
Milena Lima
ML
de Moraes
Renata
R
de Faria Barbosa
Raquel Espírito
RE
Santo
Flávia
F
da Silva Santos
Lívia Belcastro
LB
de Almeida
Edgar Francisco Oliveira
EF
de Jesus
Fátima Lucia
FL
de Carvalho Sardinha
Maria das Graças Tavares
Md
do Carmo
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D003300:Copper / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007501:Iron / Q000378:metabolism*; D010920:Placenta / Q000378:metabolism*; D011247:Pregnancy; D013052:Spectrometry, X-Ray Emission; D015032:Zinc / Q000378:metabolism*
D003300:Copper; D007501:Iron; D015032:Zinc; D002118:Calcium