Prognostic significance of evaluating selenoprotein P levels in Egyptian adult patients with thalassemia major

Abstract

Context
Selenium levels play a cardinal role in patients with thalassemia major (TM), so their evaluation was a target for many studies. However, selenoprotein P (SEPP) is not widely studied.


Aims
Our current study aims for the first time to correlate the thyroid functions of Egyptian TM patients with their SEPP levels.


Patients and methods
Sixty participants (30 controls and 30 TM patients) were included in this study. SEPP concentrations were measured in all participants using sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Ferritin, thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine, thyrotropin, antithyroid peroxidase, and antihuman thyroglobulin concentrations were also measured.


Results
Mean SEPP concentration was higher in the Egyptian TM patient group under the study than in the control group. Ferritin was inversely correlated with free T4 concentration in TM patients and controls. There was also a negative correlation between SEPP and T4 concentrations in the TM patient group.


Conclusions
SEPP levels were higher in TM patients compared with controls. The diagnostic performance of SEPP in patients with TM using receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis showed that SEPP can significantly predict thyroid disorder.