The Study Of Metallic Elements Of Skin In Current Injury

Purpose:The novel metallic elements analysis instruments were used to test the contents of metallic elements in skin tissue with current injury. We set up a detection method for skin metallization and further investigated the effect of paraformaldehyde to skin metallization in current injury.Methods:(1) The animal model of current injury was established using new Zealand rabbits. Electrode made of copper, red copper, iron or aluminium was used to electric shock the posterior limb of rabbits. Tissue skin was extracted from the position of electric shock and analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The heterolateral skin was used as control.(2) The animal model and experimental groups were same as experiment1. μ-probe X-ray Microfluorescence System (μ-XRF) was used to analyze the metallic elements in the skin tissue with electric shock after drying up. The heterolateral skin was used as control.(3) The animal model and experimental groups were same as experiment1. We used electrode made of copper or iron to electric shock the posterior limb of rabbit. The skin was extracted and fixed in10%paraformaldehyde. ICP-MS and μ-XRF were used to analyze the metallic elements after fixation of1week and6months.Results:(1) Compared with control skin, we found that there were significant differences in the content of chromium, iron, nickel, copper and zinc electric shocked with copper electrode, chromium, copper and lead electric shocked with red copper electrode, aluminium, chromium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, copper and lead electric shocked with aluminium electrode, chromium, manganese, iron and nickel electric shocked with iron electrode by using ICP-MS.(2) Copper and zinc were detected with copper electrode, copper was detected with red copper electrode, iron was detected with iron electrode and aluminium was detected with aluminium electrode in the skin by μ-XRF.(3) We used ICP-MS to check the current injured skin with fixation for1week and6months of10%paraformaldehyde. The data showed that the contents of chromium, copper, zinc and lead using copper electrode, iron, chromium and nickel using iron electrode didn’t have significant difference before and after fixation. We could still detect the content of copper and zinc with copper electrode, iron with iron electrode after fixation by μ-XRF method.Conclusions:ICP-MS and μ-XRF can be used as a reliable method to detect skin metallization in current injury. Skin metallization assay can be done in the skin tissue after fixation of paraformaldehyde.