Association between serum trace element concentrations and the disease activity of systemic lupus erythematosus

Abstract

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with a complex, incompletely understood, etiology. Several genetic and environmental factors are suspected to be involved in its aetiology. Oxidative stress may be implicated in the pathogenesis of SLE and may be affected by trace element status. Zinc (Zn), copper (Cu) and selenium (Se) are essential components of several anti-oxidative enzymes and are also involved in several immune functions. The current study aimed to assess the relationship between serum concentrations of these trace elements and the clinical disease activity of SLE assessed using the SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI). Serum concentrations of albumin (Alb) (p = 0.001), Se (p = 0.001), Zn (p = 0.001) and the Zn to Cu ratio (Zn/Cu R) (p = 0.001) were lower in patients with SLE than the age- and sex-matched healthy controls. However, only Alb (p = 0.001) and Cu (p = 0.03) were negatively correlated with disease activity, which was supported by regression analysis. In summary, lower serum values of Alb, Zn, Se and Zn/Cu R were found in SLE patients compared with healthy controls; however, in addition to serum Alb concentrations, serum Cu concentrations were also negatively correlated with lupus disease activity.

Microbiota and oxidant-antioxidant balance in systemic lupus erythematosus

“…On the other hand, the lower levels of serum zinc found in SLE subjects compared to controls were similar to those reported in other studies carried out with SLE population (17,18). It has been hypothesized that this decrease could be a result of a defense mechanism of the body against oxidative stress, given that the use of zinc as a cofactor for the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase might compromise the amount of this trace element available in blood (32,(43)(44)(45)(46).…”

“…Finally, as in other autoimmune diseases, our results revealed increased levels of serum copper in SLE subjects (16,17). This result could be explained by the increase in the synthesis of hepatic ceruloplasmin, and the subsequent release into the blood, in response to a higher production of some inflammation markers increased in this pathology, such as IL-6 and IL-1 (16).…”

“…In this regard, although it has been hypothesized that copper and selenium could be related with an adaptive response against oxidative stress and inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis, by means of an increase in ceruloplasmin and glutathione peroxidase respectively (15,16), data on the role of these trace elements in lupus is scarce. Recently, lower serum levels of zinc and selenium in SLE patients respect to healthy controls have been reported, being serum copper concentrations inversely associated with the disease activity (17,18). Thus, the present study was designed to compare the concentrations of antioxidants, pro-oxidants, major microbial groups, MDA and CRP in SLE patients and healthy controls.…”

The influence of the trace element zinc on the immune system

“…Yazar et al [76], however, found no differences in the plasma zinc concentrations of patients with RA. Patients with celiac disease [77][78][79][80], type-I diabetes mellitus [81,82], SLE [83,84], autoimmune hepatitis [85,86], primary biliary cirrhosis [87,88] and pemphigus vulgaris [89] also exhibited decreased serum zinc concentrations.…”

Reduced Serum Levels of Zinc and Superoxide Dismutase in Obese Individuals

“…Oxidative stress is one of the important mechanisms, which has been shown to be associated with CVD and obesity [3] . Superoxide dismutase (SOD) is a key antioxidant enzyme, which is activated in cells to fight against oxidative stress [4] .…”