Anna Lee , Sooah Jang , Sanghoo Lee , Hyun-Kyung Park , In-Young Kim , Ryunsup Ahn , Jeong-Ho Seok , Kyoung-Ryul Lee
{"title":"Comparative analysis of salivary cortisol measurements using different assay methods in relation to serum-free cortisol measurement","authors":"Anna Lee , Sooah Jang , Sanghoo Lee , Hyun-Kyung Park , In-Young Kim , Ryunsup Ahn , Jeong-Ho Seok , Kyoung-Ryul Lee","doi":"10.1016/j.plabm.2024.e00393","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objectives</h3><p>Salivary cortisol reflects the biologically active form of serum cortisol, offering a noninvasive evaluation method for the diurnal rhythm of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. While liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is known for its specificity, immunoassays (IA) are commonly used because of their simplicity. This study aimed to assess the performance of salivary cortisol measurement using both IA and LC-MS/MS in comparison to serum-free cortisol measurement.</p></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><p>Assay results for 188 saliva and 94 serum samples from 47 participants were analyzed. Salivary samples collected at different time points were analyzed using IA and LC-MS/MS. Serum samples were analyzed for cortisol, cortisol-binding globulin, and free cortisol. The statistical analyses included correlations and method comparisons.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>The diurnal salivary cortisol profiles exhibited a comparable circadian rhythm pattern; however, the concentrations measured using IA were consistently higher than those measured using LC-MS/MS. The correlation analysis revealed robust associations among salivary cortisol (IA), salivary cortisol (LC-MS/MS), and serum-free cortisol levels (LC-MS/MS). However, the method comparison revealed a systematic bias between IA and LC-MS/MS in salivary cortisol measurement.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>This study contributes to the ongoing debate on assay techniques by affirming the suitability of IA and LC-MS/MS for salivary cortisol measurement to assess dynamic changes in HPA axis activity. The identified systematic bias emphasizes the importance of selecting methods based on specific research or clinical requirements.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":20421,"journal":{"name":"Practical Laboratory Medicine","volume":"40 ","pages":"Article e00393"},"PeriodicalIF":1.7000,"publicationDate":"2024-04-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352551724000398/pdfft?md5=89279cbc1bebd280b01274033e305a55&pid=1-s2.0-S2352551724000398-main.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Practical Laboratory Medicine","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352551724000398","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"MEDICAL LABORATORY TECHNOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Objectives
Salivary cortisol reflects the biologically active form of serum cortisol, offering a noninvasive evaluation method for the diurnal rhythm of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. While liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is known for its specificity, immunoassays (IA) are commonly used because of their simplicity. This study aimed to assess the performance of salivary cortisol measurement using both IA and LC-MS/MS in comparison to serum-free cortisol measurement.
Methods
Assay results for 188 saliva and 94 serum samples from 47 participants were analyzed. Salivary samples collected at different time points were analyzed using IA and LC-MS/MS. Serum samples were analyzed for cortisol, cortisol-binding globulin, and free cortisol. The statistical analyses included correlations and method comparisons.
Results
The diurnal salivary cortisol profiles exhibited a comparable circadian rhythm pattern; however, the concentrations measured using IA were consistently higher than those measured using LC-MS/MS. The correlation analysis revealed robust associations among salivary cortisol (IA), salivary cortisol (LC-MS/MS), and serum-free cortisol levels (LC-MS/MS). However, the method comparison revealed a systematic bias between IA and LC-MS/MS in salivary cortisol measurement.
Conclusions
This study contributes to the ongoing debate on assay techniques by affirming the suitability of IA and LC-MS/MS for salivary cortisol measurement to assess dynamic changes in HPA axis activity. The identified systematic bias emphasizes the importance of selecting methods based on specific research or clinical requirements.
期刊介绍:
Practical Laboratory Medicine is a high-quality, peer-reviewed, international open-access journal publishing original research, new methods and critical evaluations, case reports and short papers in the fields of clinical chemistry and laboratory medicine. The objective of the journal is to provide practical information of immediate relevance to workers in clinical laboratories. The primary scope of the journal covers clinical chemistry, hematology, molecular biology and genetics relevant to laboratory medicine, microbiology, immunology, therapeutic drug monitoring and toxicology, laboratory management and informatics. We welcome papers which describe critical evaluations of biomarkers and their role in the diagnosis and treatment of clinically significant disease, validation of commercial and in-house IVD methods, method comparisons, interference reports, the development of new reagents and reference materials, reference range studies and regulatory compliance reports. Manuscripts describing the development of new methods applicable to laboratory medicine (including point-of-care testing) are particularly encouraged, even if preliminary or small scale.