In order to determine whether
elastin degradation is increased in infants whose
respiratory insufficiency requires ventilation with high concentrations of O2, we quantitated, by
amino acid analysis, the
elastin degradation products (desmosines) excreted in the urine of 14 premature male infants during the first 3 wk of life. Eight of these infants, the "low-O2" infants, did not have severe
lung disease and did not require more than 40% O2 beyond the first 8 h of life. The other 6 infants, selected retrospectively because they developed
bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), were ventilated with more than 60% O2 for at least the first 72 h of life. The pattern of
desmosine excretion observed in infants who developed BPD differed significantly (p less than 0.05) from the excretion pattern seen in "low-O2" infants during the first 3 wk of life. At the end of the first week of life,
desmosine excretion was significantly greater (p less than 0.05) in the infants who later developed BPD than in the "low-O2" infants without severe
lung disease. From Days 7-9 to 20-22,
desmosine excretion increased in the "low-O2" infants from 6.9 +/- 1.7 micrograms/kg to 9.0 +/- 3.5 micrograms/kg. In contrast,
desmosine excretion did not remain elevated in the BPD infants, decreasing from 10.6 +/- 2.2 micrograms/kg to 6.1 +/- 2.9 micrograms/kg during the same period. In the BPD infants, elevated
desmosine excretion through Day 9 is likely to reflect
lung injury, whereas decreased
desmosine excretion beyond Day 9 suggests that
elastin synthesis and turnover is impaired, possibly as a result of
nutritional deficiencies.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)