Abstract
Thymidine Activity (TA) was measured by the effect of serum upon incorporation of 3H-thymidine into lectin-activated lymphocytes in 54 newborns (NB): 32 full-term, 11 preterm and 11 with intrauterine growth retardation (IGR). Capillary blood was collected at 0-4 hr, with routine samplings. TA values were lower in preterm (.476 ± .079 U/ml) than in IRG (.91 ± .118 U/ml, p<.01) and in full-term NB (1.237 ± .06, p<.001), and also in IGR than in NB with normal weight (p<.025). In all the NB studied, TA was significantly correlated with gestational age (r = .662, p<.001) and birth weight (r = .546, p<.001). Longitudinal studies up to 21 days did not show significant changes in full-term NB, while in preterm and IGR infants TA increased progressively to reach normal values at the 21th day. In conclusion, the correlations observed in newborns between TA, birth weight and gestational age, and the postnatal normalization in infants with low birth weight, show that TA directly reflects the nutritional state of the fetus.
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Bozzola, M., Chirico, G., Chiara, A. et al. Serum-growth-promoting activity in human new-borns relationship of thymidine activity with birth weight and the length of gestation. Pediatr Res 18, 1211 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198411000-00065
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198411000-00065