Platelet monoamine oxidase and erythrocyte ATPases as biomarkers of necrotizing enterocolitis

Introduction: The diagnosis of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is complex and often ineffective. Biomarkers reflecting key links in the pathogenesis of the disease may serve as early predictors of development, progression, and severe course of NEC.

Materials and Methods: The study was conducted in two stages and included 28 children who were treated at the Chelyabinsk regional children's clinical hospital from November 2021 to December 2022. The first stage involved the examination of premature newborns, among whom a group of newborns with NEC IIIB-IIIAB was identified. Venous blood was used for the study. The second stage included the study of intestinal specimens obtained during surgical interventions in newborns with surgical pathology.

Results and discussion: Children with NEC showed a significant decrease in the specific activity of platelet monoamine oxidase (MAO), which correlated with the activity of MAO in gut specimens obtained during surgery. A decrease in the activity of Mg-ATPase in erythrocytes was established at 50-100% of the maximum enzyme activity in the control group, while the activity of Na-K-ATPase decreased by 4 times from the maximum values in the control group. There was a significant increase in the activity of Ca-ATPase in erythrocytes of preterm infants with necrotizing enterocolitis. The obtained data suggest that platelet monoamine oxidase (MAO) in preterm newborns may potentially serve as an indicator of tissue and organ immaturity, rather than a marker of inflammation and oxidative damage. The results of erythrocyte ATPase activity for the group of preterm infants with surgical stages of necrotizing enterocolitis indicate a hypoxic, hypoenergetic state, accompanied by high concentrations of intracellular calcium.

Conclusion: The obtained data are promising in terms of developing new methods for the diagnosis/prognosis of necrotizing enterocolitis in newborns.