Study of the distribution of ions and metals in blood using nuclear methodology

The present study consists of using nuclear tools aiming to establish an alternative procedure to perform biochemistry analyses in whole blood to help the diagnosis of diverse pathologies. The aim is to determine the ions and metals concentrations in whole blood of human beings (specifically: Br, Cl, K e Na), using neutron activation analysis, providing the limits of normality, as well as, the matrix of the correlation for these elements. To perform this study, 283 samples of whole blood had been analyzed (of healthy volunteers selected from blood banks), resulting in the limits of normality for Br (0.0067 - 0.0263 gl-1), Cl (2.54 - 3.50 gl-1), K (1.33 - 1.89 gl-1) and Na (1.48 - 2.06 gl-1). These data are the first estimates for reference values in whole blood of the Brazilian population. These limits were evaluated in function of the sex and age for checking the biological differences. The behavior of these limits was also evaluated for different populations, i.e., in two distinct regions: Southeast (blood collection carried out in Sao Paulo city) and Northeast (blood collection carried out in Recife city). These places were chosen in function of the similarities (cities with high concentration people and industrialized). Furthermore, a systematic study of these limits was also evaluated, in the period of 4 (four) years, in Sao Paulo city. This analysis was elaborated in function of time due the necessity to update these data, therefore they act as environment monitors. The estimation for Ca and Fe were also proposal for a set of 22 samples of whole blood.(author)