¹H NMR studies of urine from premature and sick babies

Abstract

High-frequency proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) has been applied to a study of urine from premature and sick newborn babies with a variety of clinical disorders. These included severe birth asphyxia, necrotizing enterocolitis, ketosis, and drug treatment. Abnormal levels of metabolites such as lactate, ketone bodies, betaine, dicarboxylic acids, and 4-hydroxyphenolic acids were detected, as was the antibiotic metronidazole and one of its metabolites. The assignment of betaine was confirmed by two-dimensional 1H NMR studies of urine obtained from two adults with homocystinuria receiving treatment with oral betaine. High-resolution 1H NMR spectroscopy of urine is a potentially useful research technique for monitoring metabolism during early life.

Disordered methionine/homocysteine metabolism in premature vascular disease. Its occurrence, cofactor therapy, and enzymology.

“…Liver and renal functions were normal in all control subjects, and 52 of these control subjects had serum B 12 and folate levels assessed. Thirty-one control subjects provided skin samples for assays of Q3S and FHMT activities in cultured skin fibroblasts.…”

“…Serum B 12 and folate levels were measured in 126 patients as well as erythrocyte folate levels in 60 of these patients. Standard methods were used by the Department of Clinical Chemistry to assess liver and renal functions, and folate and vitamin B 12 levels were assayed by the Department of Haematology, the Prince Henry/Prince of Wales Hospitals.…”

“…On the basis of previous observation, 12 we further hypothesized that persons deficient in BHMT activity could be expected to excrete lower than nonnal levels of urinary JV,Af-dimethylglycine.…”

Assignment of the 2.03 ppm resonance in in vivo 1H MRS of human brain tumour cystic fluid: contribution of macromolecules

“…If these differences are reproducible, they might have diagnostic interest. It is also interesting to remark that all cystic fluids present a resonance at 3.27 ppm, that could be attributed to betaine [30], which may derive from choline and have an osmolyte function. Lactate concentration, calculated from its methyl peak area, was variable among samples analysed (range 0.15-19.30 mM) ( HB hemangioblastoma, CF craniopharyngioma, GB glioblastoma, ME metastasis, AP pilocytic astrocytoma astrocytoma, hemangioblastoma, craniopharyngioma), values were 11.9 ± 0.9 mM for malignant (n = 3) and 4.0 ± 2.6 mM for benign (n = 7), differences being statistically significant (p=0.001).…”

Singular spectrum analysis for an automated solvent artifact removal and baseline correction of 1D NMR spectra

“…Examples are functional studies of bio-macromolecules that are not available in isotopeenriched form, including interaction studies with small ligands in drug design or folding/unfolding studies of proteins. Another example may be the high-throughput NMR analysis of biofluids such as urine [1], blood plasma [2], bile, cerebrospinal fluids [3] and cervical mucus [4].…”