Determination of twenty chemical element contents in normal and goitrous thyroid using X-ray fluorescent and neutron activation analysis

Nodular goiter (NG) is an internationally important health problem. The aim of this exploratory study was to examine the content of silver (Ag), bromine (Br), calcium (Ca), chlorine (Cl), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), cooper (Cu), iron (Fe), mercury (Hg), iodine (I), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), manganese (Mn), sodium (Na), rubidium (Rb), ammonium (Sb), scandium (Sc), selenium (Se), strontium (Sr), and zinc (Zn) in the normal thyroid and in the thyroid tissues with diagnosed colloid NG.. Thyroid tissue levels of twenty chemical elements (ChE) were prospectively evaluated in 46 patients with NG and 105 healthy inhabitants. Measurements were performed using non-destructive energy-dispersive X-Ray fluorescent analysis combined with instrumental neutron activation analysis with high resolution spectrometry of short– and long-lived radionuclides. Tissue samples were divided into two portions. One was used for morphological study while the other was intended for ChE analysis. It was found that during a goitrous transformation the levels of Ag, Br, Cl, Co, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mg, Na, and Sc in thyroid tissue significantly increased, whereas the levels of I and Sr decrease. It was supposed that the changes in levels Ag, Br, Cl, Co, Cu, Fe, Hg, I, Mg, Na, Sc, and Sr in thyroid tissue can be used as NG markers.