title: Defining reference values of trace elements in the tear film: diagnostic methods and possible applications.
abstract: The study has been performed on tears of apparently healthy subjects who live and work in urban and rural areas, respectively. After the collection the following elements were investigated: chromium (Cr); arsenic (As); copper (Cu); zinc (Zn); selenium (Se); rubidium (Rb); barium (Ba); lead (Pb) and cobalt (Co). Significantly higher values of As were found in subjects living and working in rural areas as compared to those found in urban area residents (0.290 vs. 0.025; p<0.001). Conversely, Ba and Pb were significantly lower in rural area residents (1.10 vs. 2.50, p=0.027 and 1.70 vs. 1.10, p=0.057, respectively). Our data show that trace elements analysis in tears is possible; further studies could define if it could be a reliable biomarker in persons exposed to high concentration of trace elements due to working or environmental reasons.
authors.affiliation: Section of Ophthalmology, Department of Surgery and Forensic Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Semeraro
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Costagliola
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cancarini
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gilberti
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tosco
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Apostoli
mesh_terms: D001151:Arsenic / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards; D002857:Chromium / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards; D003035:Cobalt / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards; D003300:Copper / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis* / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D012016:Reference Values; D012643:Selenium / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards; D013666:Tears / Q000737:chemistry*; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000032:analysis* / Q000592:standards; D015032:Zinc / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D014131:Trace Elements; D002857:Chromium; D003035:Cobalt; D003300:Copper; D012643:Selenium; D015032:Zinc; D001151:Arsenic