A team of Australian researchers have identified a biochemical marker in the blood that could help identify newborn babies at risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), a breakthrough they said creates an avenue to future tragedy-preventing interventions.
In their study, babies who died of SIDS had lower levels of an enzyme called butyrylcholinesterase shortly after birth, the researchers said. BChE plays a major role in the brain's arousal pathway, and low levels would reduce a sleeping infant's ability to wake up or respond to its environment.
Using dried blood spots taken at birth as part of a newborn screening program, Harrington's team compared BChE levels in 26 babies who later died of SIDS, 41 infants who died of other causes, and 655 surviving infants. The Sydney Children's Hospital Network in Australia called the discovery "a world-first breakthrough."
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