LEAD AND δ-AMINOLEVULINIC ACID DEHYDRATASE LEVELS IN MATERNAL AND CORD BLOOD
Lead concentrations in 50 samples of umbilical cord blood and 66 samples of maternal venous blood during the labor were determined. Among them, 47 pairs of maternal and cord blood specimens were included. The average lead levels for maternal and cord blood in 47 pairs were found to be 7.5 μg/dl and 6.6 μg/dl respectively. The average values of hematocrit and hemoglobin levels in maternal blood were significantly lower than those in cord blood. A close correlation was found between lead concentrations in maternal and cord blood (r=0.85). A good correlation was observed between δ-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALA-D) activities in maternal and cord blood (r=0.58). A certain negative correlation was observed between blood lead levels and logarithm (log) of ALA-D activities in maternal blood (r=-0.29), however, no consistent association was observed between blood lead levels and log ALA-D activities in cord blood.
