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Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc2023; 35(4); 354-358; doi: 10.1177/10406387231171045

Validation of an ELISA kit to measure allopregnanolone in human and equine hair.

Abstract: In humans, allopregnanolone plays important roles in a number of different neurodegenerative disorders, and it has been proposed for use in some therapies. Horses are commonly used as animal models for human neurodegenerative diseases, mental and behavioral disorders, and neuropsychiatric disorders, and there is interest in using hair as a biological sample to study hormones in these conditions. We validated the use of a commercial ELISA kit (DetectX allopregnanolone kit; Arbor Assays), which was designed for serum, plasma, feces, urine, and tissue samples, to assess allopregnanolone in hair samples from 30 humans and 63 horses. The ELISA kit had good precision (intra- and inter-assay CVs: 6.4% and 11.0% for equine hair; 7.3% and 11.0% for human hair, respectively), sensitivity (50.4 pg/mL for both equine and human hair), and accuracy (parallelism and recovery tests) in determining allopregnanolone concentrations in hair from both species. The allopregnanolone concentrations in human hair were 7.3-79.1 pg/mg; the concentrations were 286 ± 141 pg/mg (x̄ ± SD) in mares on the day of parturition and 16.9 ± 5.5 pg/mg in nonpregnant mares. The DetectX ELISA kit offered a simple and accessible analysis of allopregnanolone in human and equine hair samples.
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Publication Date: 2023-04-28 PubMed ID: 37114774PubMed Central: PMC10331396DOI: 10.1177/10406387231171045Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research validates the use of a commercial ELISA kit to measure allopregnanolone levels in hair samples from humans and horses, offering a feasible analysis method for this hormone in neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorder studies.

Objective of the Research

  • The objective of this study was to validate the effectiveness of a commercial ELISA (Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay) kit in measuring allopregnanolone in hair samples from humans and horses. Allopregnanolone is a key hormone implicated in various neurodegenerative disorders, making its accurate measurement crucial for potential therapies and understanding neuropsychiatric disorders.

Methodology

  • The researchers used the DetectX allopregnanolone kit from Arbor Assays, designed to assess allopregnanolone in various kinds of samples, including serum, plasma, feces, urine, and tissue samples.
  • The study involved hair samples from 30 human participants and 63 horses.
  • The validity of the ELISA kit was determined based on its precision, sensitivity, and accuracy in estimating allopregnanolone concentrations in the hair from both species.

Results

  • The results showed that the ELISA kit possessed good analytical performance including good precision (as shown by intra- and inter-assay CVs), sensitivity (could detect allopregnanolone concentration as low as 50.4 pg/mL in both human and horsehair), and accuracy (evident from parallelism and recovery tests).
  • The allopregnanolone concentrations in human hair ranged between 7.3-79.1 pg/mg, while in mares, the concentration was significantly higher (286 ± 141 pg/mg) on the day of parturition compared to nonpregnant mares (16.9 ± 5.5 pg/mg).

Conclusion

  • In conclusion, the DetectX allopregnanolone ELISA kit provides a simple and accessible method of measuring allopregnanolone in human and equine hair, demonstrating the potential to support hormone-related research in neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders.

Cite This Article

APA
Peric T, Ellero L, Comin A, Pividori I, Prandi A. (2023). Validation of an ELISA kit to measure allopregnanolone in human and equine hair. J Vet Diagn Invest, 35(4), 354-358. https://doi.org/10.1177/10406387231171045

Publication

Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc
ISSN: 1943-4936
NlmUniqueID: 9011490
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 35
Issue: 4
Pages: 354-358

Researcher Affiliations

Peric, Tanja
  • Department of Agricultural, Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.
Ellero, Letizia
  • Department of Agricultural, Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.
Comin, Antonella
  • Department of Agricultural, Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.
Pividori, Isabella
  • Department of Agricultural, Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.
Prandi, Alberto
  • Department of Agricultural, Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.

MeSH Terms

  • Humans
  • Horses
  • Animals
  • Female
  • Pregnanolone
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / veterinary
  • Feces
  • Hair

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declared that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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Citations

This article has been cited 2 times.
  1. Ellero N, Lanci A, Mariella J, van den Boom R, Cotticelli A, Peric T, Prandi A, Freccero F, Castagnetti C. Hair Allopregnanolone in Mares and Foals as a Retrospective Biomarker of Predicting Feto-Maternal Well-Being. Animals (Basel) 2025 Mar 7;15(6).
    doi: 10.3390/ani15060768pubmed: 40150297google scholar: lookup
  2. Veronesi MC, Cotticelli A, Pividori I, Giombolini M, Corazzin M, Ellero L, Peric T. From Pre-Foaling to Late Pregnancy: Cortisol, DHEA(S), Progesterone, 17-β-Estradiol, and Allopregnanolone Hair Concentration Profiles in Standardbred Mares. Animals (Basel) 2025 Jan 23;15(3).
    doi: 10.3390/ani15030324pubmed: 39943094google scholar: lookup
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