Higashi Tatsuya, Yamagata Kenichiro, Kato Yuina, Ogawa Yu, Takano Kaori, Nakaaze Yutaro, Iriyama Takashi, Min Jun Zhe, Ogawa Shoujiro
Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda-shi, Chiba 278-8510, Japan.
Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda-shi, Chiba 278-8510, Japan.
Steroids. 2016 May;109:60-5. doi: 10.1016/j.steroids.2016.02.013. Epub 2016 Feb 18.
Fingernail clipping is expected to be a specimen for steroid testing, because it has several advantages over blood; i.e., noninvasive collection, ease of storage, portability and handling, and possibility for an assessment of the steroid status over a relatively long and retrospective time window. In this study, we examined whether there is a difference in the nail contents between the right and left hands for five steroids [glycochenodeoxycholic acid (GCDCA), taurochenodeoxycholic acid (TCDCA), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), testosterone (TST) and cortisol (CRT)] using newly developed liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry methods. The nail contents between the hands were significantly different for GCDCA, TCDCA and DHEAS, whereas those of TST and CRT only slightly differed. These results might be due to the difference in the binding affinity of each steroid for the nail keratin. The relatively hydrophilic steroids, GCDCA, TCDCA and DHEAS, may be lost from nails in daily life due to their low affinity for keratin, which would produce differences in the nail contents between the hands. Thus, the fingernail GCDCA, TCDCA and DHEAS contents may be influenced by factors other than the disease; the nail analysis is inefficient in the diagnosis of the disease associated with these steroids. On the other hand, the nail analysis looks promising for evaluation of the status of TST and CRT, which are lipophilic and inferred to be tightly bound to the keratin. In fact, the nail TST content showed a significant sex difference, just like its serum/plasma concentration.
指甲剪片有望成为类固醇检测的样本，因为它相较于血液有几个优点；即非侵入性采集、易于储存、便携且易于处理，以及有可能在相对较长的回顾性时间窗口内评估类固醇状态。在本研究中，我们使用新开发的液相色谱/电喷雾电离串联质谱法，检测了五种类固醇[甘氨鹅去氧胆酸（GCDCA）、牛磺鹅去氧胆酸（TCDCA）、硫酸脱氢表雄酮（DHEAS）、睾酮（TST）和皮质醇（CRT）]在左右手指甲中的含量是否存在差异。双手之间的指甲中，GCDCA、TCDCA和DHEAS的含量存在显著差异，而TST和CRT的含量仅有轻微差异。这些结果可能是由于每种类固醇与指甲角蛋白的结合亲和力不同。相对亲水的类固醇GCDCA、TCDCA和DHEAS，可能因对角蛋白的亲和力低而在日常生活中从指甲中流失，这会导致双手之间指甲含量出现差异。因此，指甲中的GCDCA、TCDCA和DHEAS含量可能受疾病以外的因素影响；指甲分析在诊断与这些类固醇相关的疾病方面效率不高。另一方面，指甲分析在评估TST和CRT的状态方面看起来很有前景，TST和CRT是亲脂性的，据推测与角蛋白紧密结合。事实上，指甲中的TST含量显示出显著的性别差异，就像其血清/血浆浓度一样。
