Anti-Ethylglucuronide polyclonal antibody

Background Although fetal alcohol spectrum disorders represent a significant public health problem, Native Americans are underrepresented in population and targeted screening programs. Prior reports suggest that Native American tribal communities may have a higher prevalence of alcohol use during pregnancy; however, systematic examination using ethanol biomarkers is lacking. Methods This study utilized data collected through the Navajo Birth Cohort Study (NBCS)-a birth cohort study of a Southwestern tribal community. Prevalence of prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) was assessed by a battery of meconium biomarkers among 333 NBCS participants. Meconium samples were analyzed for nine individual fatty acid ethyl ester (FAEE) species, ethyl glucuronide (EtG), and ethyl sulfate (EtS) by LC-MS/MS. Results Participants were recruited from five hospitals at the Navajo Nation located in Arizona (Chinle, Tsehootsooi, Tuba City) and New Mexico (Gallup, Shiprock). All participants identified as Native American; most reported a personal income of <$20,000 per year (71.3%), and <= high school education (55.3%). The most prevalent biomarker was EtS (7.8%) followed by ethyl oleate (6.9%); 5.4% of the sample were positive for at least two biomarkers. Conclusions Results of this study on the prevalence of PAE in the Navajo Nation, obtained for the first time with an objective comprehensive panel of meconium biomarkers, indicate that the rates in the NBCS may be comparable to the general U.S. population and are in accord with recent U.S. national survey estimates. Our findings emphasize that drinking behaviors among Native American communities in the United States can vary, and generalization across all Native American populations is not warranted.

Alcohol intoxication leads to road accidents, violence, and the deteriorated health of heavy drinkers. Hence, a convenient means to monitor alcohol consumption with an accuracy and selective manner is a demand by law enforcement personnel, service/hospitality industry, or individual drinkers. We report on a label-free, highly sensitive, and selective alcohol immunosensor based on 2D zinc oxide nanoflakes (ZnO-NFs), which were synthesized on gold-coated flexible polyethylene terephthalate substrates using a single-step sonochemical process. Selective detection of alcohol was achieved via ethylglucuronide (EtG) detection by immobilizing EtG antibody (EtG-AB) on the as-synthesized sensing electrodes of ZnO-NFs. The 2D ZnO-NFs provide unique sensing advantages over bulk materials. The cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements demonstrated the sensitivity of 0.032 mA/decade/cm(2) in the concentration range of 1 ng/ml to 100 mu g/ml which covered the physiological range. The minimum level of detection was determined much lower than 1 ng/ml. Shelf-life studies showed that the presented EtG sensors can be used over two months after the first use without significant performance degradation. Our method and device would help realizing continuous alcohol monitoring in the wearable platform.