Urine collected from diapers can be used for 2‐D PAGE in infants and young children

Abstract

Urinary proteomic profiling has potential to identify candidate biomarkers of renal injury in infants provided an adequate urine sample can be obtained. Although diapers are used to obtain urine for clinical evaluation, their use for proteomic analysis has not been investigated. We therefore performed feasibility studies on the use of diaper-extracted urine for 2-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE). Pediatric waste urine (2-20 mL) was applied to gel-containing, non-gel and cotton-gauze diapers and then mechanically expressed. Urine volume and total protein were measured pre-and post-extraction. Proteins were separated via 2D-PAGE following application of urine (20-40 mL) to each matrix. 2D-PAGE was also performed on clinical specimens collected using each diaper type. Differences in the adsorption and retention of urine volume and protein were noted between matrices. Non-gel and cotton-gauze diapers provided the best protein/volume recovery and the lowest interference with the Bradford assay. 2D-PAGE was also successfully completed using urine samples from both cotton fiber matrices. Conversely, samples from low-gel diapers demonstrated poor protein separation and reproducibility. Diapers containing cotton-fiber matrices appear adequate for 2D-PAGE. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of resolved proteins using replicate, high resolution gels will be required, however, before diaper-extracted urine can be applied in proteomic profiling.

Clinical Evaluation of a Novel Urine Collection Kit Using Filter Paper in Neonates: An Observational Study

“…Urine bags are useful for biochemical examination, which requires a large volume of urine collection. However, neonates weighing <1500 g can often develop vulval inflammation from tape fixation because of their immature skin, and girls are likely to have leakage from the urine bag [ 16 ]. Furthermore, there is considerable contamination of the skin bacteria, and urine samples are unsuitable for the diagnosis of urinary tract infections [ 6 , 17 , 18 ].…”