Publications by authors named "Samantha L Crook"
Article Synopsis
- * This study evaluated arsenic levels in toenail clippings from 60 Atlantic Canadians using a portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) method and compared it to a standard technique called inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).
- * Results showed a strong correlation between the two methods, particularly in samples with higher arsenic levels, indicating that the portable XRF could effectively screen for arsenic exposure with a sensitivity of 76% and specificity of 81%.
Portable X-ray fluorescence of zinc applied to human toenail clippings.
J Trace Elem Med Biol
December 2020
Zinc is an essential trace element in humans. Zinc deficiency can result in a range of serious medical conditions which include effects on growth and development, the immune system, the central nervous system, and the gastrointestinal system. Diagnosis of zinc deficiency is often precluded by the lack of a noninvasive and reliable biomarker.
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- A portable X-ray fluorescence device was used to analyze zinc concentrations in nail clippings, measuring each clipping individually for 300 seconds using a focused X-ray beam.
- The zinc signal varied significantly among different clippings, leading to a high relative standard deviation of 41%, which was reduced to 12-13% by applying three normalization techniques.
- After accounting for clipping thickness, the "thickness-corrected" zinc values showed a relative standard deviation of 6.2%, indicating the method's effectiveness and potential for assessing zinc status in humans with just one nail sample.