Abstract
BackgroundHuman scalp hair is composed of bio-synthesized protein that stores and excretes excess elements from the body. Thus, the concentration of major and trace elements in the hair may provide insight into both the physiology and health status of humans. Monitoring of health status by hair analysis is limited by the uncertainty surrounding natural changes in composition based on age and sex parameters.MethodsA total of 322 hair samples from subjects aged 0–89 years were collected and analyzed to determine their sulfur, calcium, magnesium, zinc, and copper concentrations by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The age- and sex-dependence of the concentrations of these elements within scalp hair was evaluated. Age-dependence was analyzed by least squares fitting of the data from young people (up to 25 years old). Sex-dependence was evaluated by comparing the average element concentrations of males and females in each age groups.ResultsThe concentration of mineral elements increased with age up to 25 years old. Calcium and magnesium contents were strongly affected by age, whereas the effects were weaker for zinc and copper. In participants over 20 years old, sex and the concentrations of calcium and magnesium were significantly associated. The concentrations of these elements were higher in most of the subgroups of adult women. The concentrations of sulfur, zinc, and copper were not significantly associated with age or sex.ConclusionsThe concentrations of major inorganic elements in scalp hair showed an increasing trend up to 25 years of age, and a strong sex dependence of calcium and magnesium concentrations in the subjects older than 20 years. More research is needed to understand the physiology of calcium and magnesium excretion though scalp hair.
Highlights
Human scalp hair is composed of bio-synthesized protein that stores and excretes excess elements from the body
We evaluated the sex- and agedependence of major elements in scalp hair from 322 hair samples collected from participants aged 0–89 years, with approximately 20% of the samples collected from children less than 10 years of age
The concentrations of the five essential elements in human hair are plotted against subject age in Fig. 1, where the circles represent element concentrations in samples from the female subjects and squares represent those from the male subjects
Summary
Human scalp hair is composed of bio-synthesized protein that stores and excretes excess elements from the body. The concentration of major and trace elements in the hair may provide insight into both the physiology and health status of humans. Monitoring of health status by hair analysis is limited by the uncertainty surrounding natural changes in composition based on age and sex parameters. The hair fiber shaft is mostly composed of keratin proteins, lipids, moisture, and mineral elements that are typically bound to amino acids in proteins or fatty acid groups in lipids [1, 2]. Magnesium, zinc, and copper are essential elements in bone, as they help to increase bone strength via interactions with more than 300 enzymes [3]. These elements are highly abundant in scalp hair. Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the bone and scalp hair
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