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Study of β-thalassemia biomarkers and their relationship to cognition among children
Ghaydaa A Shehata1, Khaled I Elsayh, Nafisa H Rafet
1Department of Neurology, Assiut University, Egypt. ghaydaa83@yahoo.com
Insights
Beta-thalassemia in children is linked to altered biomarkers like ferritin and nitric oxide. These changes correlate with cognitive function and event-related potentials, impacting brain activity.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Hematology
- Neuroscience
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Beta-thalassemia is a genetic blood disorder requiring lifelong management.
- Cognitive deficits are increasingly recognized in children with beta-thalassemia.
- Biomarkers may offer insights into disease impact on neurocognition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To measure beta-thalassemia biomarkers: ferritin, serum transferrin receptors (sTfR), and nitric oxide (NO).
- To investigate the relationship between these biomarkers and cognitive functions in children.
- To assess event-related potentials (ERPs) as indicators of cognitive processing.
Main Methods:
- Comparative study of 30 children with beta-thalassemia and 40 healthy controls.
- Clinical and laboratory assessments including ferritin, sTfR, and NO levels.
- Cognitive function tests and event-related potential (ERP) analysis (P300-N2 amplitude).
Main Results:
- Children with beta-thalassemia showed higher ferritin and sTfR, and lower NO levels.
- Significant correlations were found between sTfR, NO levels, and ERP latencies/P300-N2 amplitude.
- Frequent blood transfusions correlated with elevated sTfR and reduced NO.
Conclusions:
- Biomarker profiles (ferritin, sTfR, NO) are altered in pediatric beta-thalassemia.
- These biomarkers are associated with cognitive function and neurophysiological measures.
- Findings suggest potential links between iron overload, NO deficiency, and cognitive impairment in beta-thalassemia.
Abstract:
The current study is to detect some biomarkers of beta-thalassemia (ferritin, serum transferrin receptors, and nitric oxide levels) and to examine the relation between these markers and cognition in children with beta-thalassemia. Thirty children with beta-thalassemia were selected from the Pediatric Department at Assiut University hospital. Another 40 healthy children of the same age, sex, years of schooling, body mass index (BMI), and social scale were chosen as the control group. Assessment of clinical, laboratory, cognitive functions, and event related potential was done for patients and control groups. Significantly higher levels of ferritin and serum transferrin receptors with decreased nitric oxide were detected among children with beta-thalassemia. There were significant correlations between serum transferrin receptors and nitric oxide levels with event related potential latencies and with some cognitive function tests and P300-N2 amplitude. Frequent blood transfusion was associated with increased serum transferrin receptors and decreased nitric oxide levels.
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