Comparison of Whole-Blood Glutathione Peroxidase Activity, Levels of Serum Selenium, and Lipid Peroxidation in Subjects from the Fishing and Rural Communities of "Rabo de Peixe" Village, San Miguel Island, The Azores' Archipelago, Portugal

Abstract

The activity of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), serum selenium (Se), and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) were measured in the whole blood of 148 healthy adults aged 20-60 yr from the fishing and rural communities of "Rabo de Peixe," The Azores, Portugal.The subjects did not live in the same household and had different socioeconomic profiles and dietary habits. The serum lipid profile and selected life habits were also considered in this study. No significant differences in the activity of GSH-Px were found in the interpopulation or intrapopulation analyses, classified by age or lipid profile. Biological Trace Element Research 27Vol. 92, 2003 ©Copyright 2003 by Humana Press Inc. All rights of any nature, whatsoever, reserved. 0163-4984/03/9201-0027 $20.00*Author to whom all correspondence and reprint requests should be addressed.An age-dependent GSH-Px increase was noted in the younger male (M) subgroups (20-39 yr). The Se levels were higher in fishers (f) of both genders (M, F) than in subjects living in the rural (r) environment: 110±25 µg/L (f, M), 89±20 µg/L (f, F), 88±22 µg/L (r, M) and 80±17 µg/L (r, F). In the fishers, but not in the rural population, Se was higher in the males, but it did not show significant variation with age. The levels of TBARS were lower in the f than in the r male group. The Se level was lower and TBARS higher in the hyperlipemic women in the f group, compared to the corresponding controls.Our results suggest that the fishers (mainly men) show a better antioxidant status than that of their rural counterparts, due to differences in dietary habits between the study populations and between genders.

Essential and non-essential trace metals in scalp hair of men chronically exposed to volcanogenic metals in the Azores, Portugal

“…Values observed in these two age groups may be due to high concentrations of Se in very few individuals, probably as a consequence of dietary supplements or any chemical medication used as cancer chemopreventive agent, not assessed in this study, which may explain the high standard errors. The low Se concentrations detected in men from Furnas were in accordance to data referred by Pavão et al (2003) that, comparing a group of people from this site with a group of people from a fishing community, concluded blood Se levels were lower in the individuals living in Furnas.…”

Trace Element Status (Se, Cu, Zn) in Healthy Portuguese Subjects of Lisbon Population: A Reference Study

“…Serum Cu concentrations were generally in the same range as those found for other Portuguese populations from the Azores archipelago (17,19,22) and also for other European countries (13). Cu serum levels were here not influenced by age, but clearly gender-related with the women having the highest Cu values, such as already shown in previous studies (13,41).…”

“…Serum Se levels in men were lower than those found in fishing populations from the Azores archipelago (110 ± 25 µg/L) (19) and from Madeira Island (104 ± 21 µg/L) (38), but both genders had Se levels similar to those observed in rural populations of the Azores archipelago for men (88 ± 22 µg/L) and women (80 ± 17 µg/L) (19). Remarkably, the Se concentrations presently assessed were lower than those previously found for both genders in the Lisbon population (96 ± 15 µg/L for men and 89 ± 14 µg/L for women) (25).…”

“…In addition, geographical location seems to be an important factor in determining blood levels of some trace elements because the levels can be linked to the influences of geochemistry on soils, food, and water supply (8,(16)(17)(18)(19). Finally, social and environmental conditions and lifestyle such as tobacco consumption are also factors influencing the trace element status (16,(19)(20)(21)(22)(23).…”

“…Some clinical prospective studies have suggested a relationship between these trace element levels and the serum lipid profile (19,24,25). Moreover, it is believed that the impairment of this trace element status might be linked to the occurrence of degenerative diseases associated with vascular damage and atherogenesis (24,(26)(27)(28)(29).…”