Copper concentrations in Egyptian infants with cholestasis: A single center study.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS: Hepatobiliary cholestatic disorders produce excess copper (Cu) retention in the liver, which is toxic and may cause hepatitis, fulminant hepatic failure, cirrhosis and death. In this study, we measured hepatic Cu and tested its correlation with serum Cu (S. Cu) and serum ceruloplasmin (S. ceruloplasmin) in cholestatic infants. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 41 cholestatic infants were enrolled as cases and 11 healthy infants as control subjects. S. Cu and S. ceruloplasmin were done for all infants and hepatic Cu was measured in the liver specimen in cases. RESULTS: Cases were 63.5% males with their age ranging between 1 and 7 months, while control subjects were 45.5% males with an age range between 3 and 18 months. Among cases, 41.5% had biliary atresia and 58.5% had intrahepatic cholestasis. Cholestatic infants had significantly higher levels of S. Cu and S. ceruloplasmin than control subjects and their hepatic Cu concentration was significantly higher than literature control. Infants with biliary atresia showed higher levels of Cu indices, with no statistical significance. Serum and hepatic Cu levels positively correlated with each other and with S. ceruloplasmin. Results of ROC curve showed that S. Cu was highly sensitive and specific for predicting hepatic Cu concentration at cut-off 181 µg/dl. CONCLUSION: Serum and hepatic Cu concentrations were markedly elevated in patients with cholestasis and positively correlated with each other and with S. ceruloplasmin. S. Cu level can predict hepatic Cu concentration.

Meta-analysis of serum copper and heart failure / 中国药理学与毒理学杂志

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study is to clarify the association between Cu levels and heart failure(HF)using a meta- analysis approach. METHODS We searched articles in the PubMed, EMbase, CNKI, Wanfang ,VIP and CBM Database published as of August 2016. The case control study on the relationship between serum copper levels and HF were collected and read and extracted by two independent researchers. A Meta analysis was conducted using Stata 12.0 software. RESULTS A total of twenty- one eligible articles, including 893 HF and 654 control subjects, were enrolled. The Meta analysis showed that serum copper levels in HF were higher than control group〔SMD=0.881, 95%CI: (0.487 ,1.264), Z=4.5, P<0.001〕. The sensitivity analysis indicated that the results were reliable. Begg's tests did not find the existence of publication bias. CONCLUSION This meta-analysis indicates that there is a significant association between high Cu serum level and HF.

A Study on Nutrient Intakes and Serum Levels of Copper, Zinc and Manganese in Korean Postmenopausal Women with Different Bone Mineral Density

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among nutrient intakes, BMD, serum copper, zinc and manganese contents in Korean postmenopausal women residing in Seoul and Kyunggi-do. Nutrient intakes analyses and anthropometric measurements were performed for 64 postmenopausal women. Also, fasting blood samples were collected. The BMDs of the lumbar spine (L2-L4) and femoral neck were measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Subjects were classified into three groups: osteoporosis (T-score -1, n = 20). The results are summarized as follows: the mean age, height and weight were 62.1 yrs, 153.8 cm, and 56.1 kg, respectively, with no significant difference among three groups. On the other hand, the mean BMI (23.7 g/m2) of normal group was significantly higher than those of other two groups. The mean energy intake was 1,395.3 kcal (77.5% of Dietary referance intakes for koreans (KDRIs)). The average daily intakes of vitamin B2, calcium and zinc did not reach KDRIs. The mean intakes of iron, copper, zinc and manganese were 10.9 mg, 1.6 mg, 7.8 mg and 5.1 mg respectively, with no significant difference among three groups. The mean serum levels of copper, zinc and manganese were 96.4 mg/dl, 91.5 mg/dl and 39.5 ng/dl, respectively with no significant differences among three groups. The BMD of lumbar spine showed a significantly negative correlation intakes of animal protein, fat and iron intakes after adjusting for age, BMI. However, the BMD of lumbar spine was not significantly correlated with animal iron intakes after adjusting for animal protein, and fat intakes, indicating animal food intake is a possible confounding factor. Proper intakes of vitamin B 2 , vitamin C are required to protect osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. These results suggest that excessive animal food intakes may have adverse effect on bone mineral density. Further studies are necessary to elucidate the role of serum minerals in BMD.