Pyridoxal phosphate in cord blood of pre-eclamptic infants

Pyridoxal phosphate [vitamin B[6]] was measured in maternal and cord blood. The average plasma concentration in thirty women with normal pregnancy was 3.8 +/- 1.3 ng/ml, in thirty women with preeclampsia 2.5 +/- 0.8 ng/ml and in non pregnant women 6.2 +/- 1.7 ng/ml. The average cord blood concentration of normal infants was 12.65 +/- 3.09 ng/ml whereas that of infants of preeclamptic mothers was 6.02 +/- 7.6 ng/ml. This two fold difference of the concentrations was statistically significant. A positive correlation was found between Apgar scores and cord vitamin B[6] as well as maternal vitamin B[6] in the normal fullterm newborn and the newborn of preeclamptic pregnancy. We suggest that dietary supplementation with vitamin B[6] should be instituted in women at high risk for development of toxemia of pregnancy as one step in protecting the neurologic development of the fetus

study on serological survey of Malta fever [brucellosis]

Brucellosis is mainly an occupational disease, a highly significant difference could he detected between workers in contact with dairy animals and those not in contact with animals by Standard Tube Agglutination Test [S.A.T] and Rose Bengal Plate Agglutination. [R.B.P.A.] Children are affected very much less often than adults, the odd low incidence in children is unexplained, the age group of 14-53 years showed higher positivity rate than the other groups. Brucella agglutinating antibodies are found in a high proportion of the studied population [25.5 percent] which may suggest that exposure to brucella organisms is widespread in Egypt

Cell mediated immunity in diabetes mellitus

The percentage of peripheral T lymphocytes was determined in twenty Insulin Non Dependent Diabetes Mellitus [N.I.D.D.M.] and twenty controls. The mean percentage of Erosette formation was lower in I.D.D.M. [68.75 percent] N.I.D.D.M. [69.9 percent] by comparison to the controls [73.6 percent]. I.D.D.M, [63.8 percent], N.I.D.D.M. [73.5 percent] had a significantly decreased mean response to phytohemagglutinin stimulation by comparison to the control subjects [80 percent]. These findings support the concept of depressed cell-mediated immunity in the diabetic and might explain the propensity of the uncontrolled diabetic to increased frequency and severity of bacterial infection

Glycosylated hemoglobin in different haemolytic conditions

In this work the effect of some hemolytic disorders on the level of Hb A [1c] were studied. Twenty three cases with hemolytic anaemia [11 with thalassemia, 9 with G6PD deficiency and 3 with immune type of hemolytic anaemia] and twenty normal controls were studied. Complete haemograrn, reticulocytic count, foetal Hb, Hb electrophoresis and estimation of glycosylated Hb were done for all subjects. Level of HbA [1c] was found to be elevated in thalassemia patients than in control group, and this difference is statistically significant [P < 0.00 1]. While it was lower in G6PD deficiency, and in immune hemolytic anaemia than in the control, and the difference is also highly significant [P < 0.001] and [P<0.0005] respectively. So glycosylated haemoglobin level not only depends on blood glucose level but also on red cell life span and the presence of abnormal haemoglobin