Normative Fecal Calprotectin Concentrations in Guatemalan Preschoolers Are High Relative to Children Reported Elsewhere.

Background: Calprotectin is a fecal marker of intraintestinal inflammation derived from activated enteric neutrophils and macrophages. It is useful as a clinical marker in inflammatory bowel diseases; furthermore, it may have a role in public health epidemiology.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to describe the distribution of fecal calprotectin in Guatemalan preschool children sharing a common institutional diet; to relate it collectively to pediatric distributions in other geographic settings, and individually to concomitant indicators of intestinal infection or colonization and other descriptive features of the child.

Associations among Inflammatory Biomarkers in the Circulating, Plasmatic, Salivary and Intraluminal Anatomical Compartments in Apparently Healthy Preschool Children from the Western Highlands of Guatemala.

Background: Undernutrition and inflammation are related in many ways; for instance, non-hygienic environments are associated with both poor growth and immunostimulation in children.

Objective: To describe any existing interaction among different inflammation biomarkers measured in the distinct anatomical compartments of whole blood, feces, plasma and saliva.

Methods: In this descriptive, cross-sectional study, samples of whole blood, feces, plasma and saliva were collected on the 8th and last week of observation among 87 attendees (42 girls and 45 boys) of 3 daycare centers offering a common 40-day rotating menu in Guatemala's Western Highlands.

Differences in circulating non-transferrin-bound iron after oral administration of ferrous sulfate, sodium iron EDTA, or iron polymaltose in women with marginal iron stores.

Background: The adverse interactions between iron supplements and malaria have driven the assessment of new therapeutic options for anemia prophylaxis in areas holoendemic for falciparum malaria.

Objective: To determine the responses of circulating non-transferrin-bound iron (NTBI) and plasma iron to three different oral iron compounds--ferrous sulfate, sodium iron ethylenediaminetetraacetate (NaFeEDTA), and iron polymaltose (IPM)--in women with marginal iron stores.

Methods: Serum samples from 10 Guatemalan women with marginal iron stores were collected every 90 minutes over a period of 270 minutes, after the individually randomized administration of 100 mg of iron from each of the three studied iron compounds or water alone.

Oral administration of ferrous sulfate, but not of iron polymaltose or sodium iron ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (NaFeEDTA), results in a substantial increase of non-transferrin-bound iron in healthy iron-adequate men.

Background: Oral iron supplementation with ferrous sulfate (FeSO₄) at dosage levels suggested by the international guidelines poses a safety hazard to young children with malaria. Exposure to loosely bound iron in the circulation has been advanced as a potential factor.

Objective: To evaluate the kinetics of circulating concentrations of plasma iron and non-transferrin-bound iron (NTBI) in response to oral iron administration in healthy adults.

Impact of oral iron challenges on circulating non-transferrin-bound iron in healthy Guatemalan males.

Introduction: Oral iron as a supplement has been associated with adverse health consequences, especially in the context of young children with active malaria. A potential aggravating role of non-transferrin-bound iron (NTBI) has been proposed.

Material And Methods: NTBI responses in both a fasting and post-oral iron dosing situation were related to serum iron concentration and ferritin status.

Reproducibility of and correspondence among different hepcidin forms in blood and urine and their relationships to iron status in healthy, male Guatemalan volunteers observed over 9 weeks.

Background/aims: Prohepcidin and the active form hepcidin-25 are two variants of the peptide hormone hepcidin for iron homoeostasis. Their regulatory role and usefulness as biomarkers of the iron status are uncertain. Our aim is to describe the intra-individual variance of serum and urinary hepcidin-25 and prohepcidin concentrations, the mutual associations of the 4 hepcidin formats, and their correspondence with iron status variables in male Guatemalan volunteers.

Bioavailability of zinc from NutriSet zinc tablets compared with aqueous zinc sulfate.

Background/objectives: The apparent widespread extent of zinc (Zn) deficiency in developing countries and the efficacy of oral Zn supplements as an adjunct to oral rehydration therapy make oral Zn supplementation an increasingly important modality in clinical medicine and public health. In this study we aimed to compare the relative bioavailability of oral doses of 30 mg of Zn in two dosing forms.

Subjects/methods: In total, 10 healthy male volunteers ingested oral Zn doses with 200 ml plain water at about 0830 hours in the fasting state on two occasions, once as 30 mg of Zn in an aqueous solution of reagent grade zinc sulfate (ZnSO(4)) and another time as 1.

Haematological response to haem iron or ferrous sulphate mixed with refried black beans in moderately anaemic Guatemalan pre-school children.

Objective: Combating iron deficiency in toddlers with iron-fortified food has proved difficult in countries with phytate-rich diets. For this purpose, a new haem iron preparation was developed. The study compared changes in iron status after administration of refried beans with beans fortified with a haem iron preparation or ferrous sulphate (FeSO4).

Ferritin concentrations in dried serum spots prepared by standard compared with simplified approaches: a validation study in Guatemala City.

Background: Spot ferritin assay on dried serum spot (DSS) samples provides reliable and accurate assessment. Standard DSS preparations, however, involve precise serum aliquots and require some skill and training of field personnel.

Objective: We evaluated the validity of the spot ferritin assay on DSS samples prepared by simplified approaches and standard technique in Guatemala City.

Effects of discontinuing coffee intake on iron deficient Guatemalan toddlers' cognitive development and sleep.

Coffee is commonly given daily to toddlers in Guatemala. Possible negative effects of coffee ingestion on cognitive development and sleep patterns were assessed in 132 children 12-24 months of age who had received coffee for > 2 months and were iron deficient on at least one indicator. Children were stratified by initial hemoglobin (A= anemic, Hgb < 10.

Assessment of total body stores of vitamin A in Guatemalan elderly by the deuterated-retinol-dilution method.

Background: Deuterated retinol dilution (DRD) gives quantitative estimates of total body stores of vitamin A.

Objectives: In elderly people, we studied 1) the time when an oral dose of deuterated vitamin A equilibrates with body stores, 2) whether serum ratios of deuterated to nondeuterated retinol (D:H) at 3 or 6 d postdosing predicted body stores, and 3) the ability of DRD to detect changes in the size of the body vitamin A pool.

Design: A 10-mg oral dose of [2H4]retinyl acetate was administered to 60-81-y-old Guatemalans (n = 47); percentage enrichment of serum retinol with deuterated retinol was determined at 1-3 time points per subject at 3, 6, 7, 14, 20, 21, and 54 d.

The street food culture of Guatemala City: a case study from a downtown, urban park.

This study investigated the structure and environment of 31 street food vendors in an urban park in the downtown area of Guatemala City. Vendors were interviewed and observed in order to assess the quality, safety, and accessibility of street food. The street food vending in the park consisted of five types: whole meal, snack, beverage, fruits, and carts.

Effects of discontinuing coffee intake on iron status of iron-deficient Guatemalan toddlers: a randomized intervention study.

Coffee is one of the first liquids given to infants in Guatemala. To evaluate whether this practice has an adverse effect on iron status, 160 children 12-24 mo of age who had received coffee for > or = 2 mo and had at least one indicator of iron deficiency were stratified by initial hemoglobin concentration (anemic, or nonanemic, ie, hemoglobin > or = 105 g/L) and randomly assigned to a control (continuation of coffee; coffee) or intervention (provided with a substitute consisting of sugar and coloring; substitute) group for 5 mo. Anemic children were provided with iron supplements for 2-3 mo.

A randomized intervention study of the effects of discontinuing coffee intake on growth and morbidity of iron-deficient Guatemalan toddlers.

Coffee is widely consumed by children in Guatemala. To evaluate whether coffee has an adverse effect on growth or morbidity, 160 children 12-24 mo of age who had received coffee for > or = 2 mo and had at least one indicator of iron deficiency were stratified by initial hemoglobin (Hb) (A = anemic vs. NA = "nonanemic", i.

Blood retinol and beta-carotene levels in rural Guatemalan preschool children.

Plasma retinol and beta-carotene levels were measured in 502 preschool Guatemalan children from five rural hamlets. Their ages ranged from 6 to 78 months (mean: 42.9 +/- 19.

Mitochondrial DNA and Ascaris microepidemiology: the composition of parasite populations from individual hosts, families and villages.

Patterns of genetic subdivision in parasite populations can provide important insights into transmission processes and complement information obtained using traditional epidemiological techniques. We describe mitochondrial sequence variation in 265 Ascaris collected from 62 individual hosts (humans and pigs) from 35 households in 3 Guatemalan locations. Restriction mapping of individual worms revealed 42 distinct mitochondrial genotypes.

[Relationship between plasmatic lipids and fat soluble vitamins in Guatemalan periurban elderly].

The levels of plasmatic lipids and fat liposoluble vitamins were measured in 107 elderlies (29% males, 71% females) who were residents of a poor periurban neighborhood of Guatemala City. The age ranged between 60-103 years (means +/- sd 69 +/- 8). The mean and sd for the plasmatic levels of lipids and vitamins were (ranges in parenthesis): cholesterol 220 +/- 42 mg/dl (128 to 428); triglycerides: 189 +/- 92 mg/dl (54 to 513); retinol 50 +/- 16 ug/dl (4.

Genetic structure and epidemiology of Ascaris populations: patterns of host affiliation in Guatemala.

In Guatemalan villages people commonly rear pigs, and both hosts may be infected with Ascaris. This study was designed to ask whether both humans and pigs are potential hosts in a single parasite transmission cycle in such villages, or alternatively, if there are two separate transmission cycles, one involving pigs and one involving human hosts. Parasites were collected from both host species from locations in the north and south of Guatemala.