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Relative Affinity M Constant of Adult and Fetal Hemoglobin for Carbon Monoxide in Humans: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

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Abstract

The Haldane M constant represents the ratio of oxygen/carbon monoxide affinity to hemoglobin. Findings on M values appear to be quite variable among studies. A systematic review and a meta-analysis were conducted to set a reference of human M values according to experimental conditions. The searched included all the relevant articles published from 1985 to January 2016 and extracted from the major electronic libraries database (PubMed/Embase/JSTOR). For each article, the following items were collected: age, temperature, pH, atmospheric pressure, 2,3-diphosphoglycerate (2,3-DPG) or methemoglobin levels, and hemoglobin type. Statistical analyses were performed using JMP®Pro12 software. Among the 1.683 articles analyzed, 15 were selected, which included 111 individual data, 21 mean values related to human adult hemoglobin (HbA) and 57 mean values for fetal hemoglobin (HbF) at known temperature and pH. The median M value at physiological conditions was 218 [191–257] (n = 19) for HbA and 175 [158–192] for HbF. There was a negative correlation between temperature and M value (p < 0.001), but no correlation between M and pH for HbA (p = 0.33), conversely to HbF (p = 0.044). Data were insufficient to perform a meta-analysis on the dependence between M and 2,3-DPG concentration, atmospheric pressure, pregnancy, methemoglobin, and sickle Hb. Our analysis confirmed that the M value in humans at physiological conditions is 218 for HbA and 175 for HbF. Temperature influences M, but further studies are required to clarify pH influence.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors would like to thank Caroline Closset and Christine Lanners from the library unit (Catholic university of Louvain, UCL, Brussels, Belgium) and the Experimental Surgery and Transplantation unit (CHEX, Catholic university of Louvain, UCL, Brussels, Belgium) for their assistance and precious help. The authors also thank Johanna Maccioni for reviewing the manuscript.

Funding

This study received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Emergency and Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium

    Nicolas Delvau & Andrea Penaloza

  2. Departments of Pneumology and Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium

    Giuseppe Liistro

  3. Emergency Department, Grand Hôpital de Charleroi, Charleroi, Belgium

    Frédéric Thys

  4. Réanimation Médicale et Toxicologique, Hôpital Lariboisière, INSERM U1144, université Paris-Diderot, Paris, France

    Bruno Megarbane

  5. Intensive Care and Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium

    Philippe Hantson

  6. Emergency Department, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, Angers Cedex 01, France

    Pierre-Marie Roy

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  1. Nicolas Delvau
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Nicolas Delvau, Penaloza, A., Liistro, G. et al. Relative Affinity M Constant of Adult and Fetal Hemoglobin for Carbon Monoxide in Humans: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Hum Physiol 46, 191–199 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0362119720020048

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