Variations in the Concentrations of Cu and Zn and in the Ratio of Cu to Zn in Whole Blood and Hair Samples from Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients and from Healthy Controls in Taiwan

Abstract

An atomic absorption spectrophotometer was used to determine concentrations of copper and zinc and the ratio of Cu to Zn in samples of whole blood and hair from hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients (n ¼ 51) and from healthy controls (n ¼ 50) in Taiwan. Our results indicate that the HCC patients have higher copper concentrations and higher ratios of Cu to Zn than do the healthy controls both in whole blood and hair samples, but only the concentration of copper and the ratio of Cu to Zn in whole blood were significantly different (p , 0.001 and p , 0.05). Conversely, a lower concentration of zinc was found in whole blood and hair samples of HCC patients. Similarly, only the concentration of zinc in whole blood showed a significant difference (p , 0.001). We concluded that the whole blood concentrations of copper and zinc and the ratio of Cu to Zn seemed to have a higher correlation with HCC. Thus, we suggest that a sample of whole blood may be a more suitable diagnostic sample than is a hair sample for HCC.

Copper and zinc levels in serum and tissue in Egyptian patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and cirrhosis

“…This is in accordance with the results of Poo et al [15] and Wang et al [16], which may be explained by increased uptake from the gut, diminished excretion by the liver, and tissue breakdown with consequent release of copper stores. This is in accordance with the results of Poo et al [15] and Wang et al [16], which may be explained by increased uptake from the gut, diminished excretion by the liver, and tissue breakdown with consequent release of copper stores.…”

Nail Antioxidant Trace Elements Are Inversely Associated with Inflammatory Markers in Healthy Young Adults

“…In this sense, a proinflammatory state, linked to oxidative stress in which the concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 are increased, has been associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes [4]. Moreover, a decrease in nail Se concentrations in subjects with inflammatory diseases compared with healthy subjects had been previously reported [20][21][22][23]38]. Furthermore, several studies have evidenced the interaction of dietary antioxidant trace elements such as Se with inflammation-related markers including declared intake [39,40] and nail concentrations [41,42], highlighting the relationship between inflammation and concentrations of antioxidants.…”

“…Nail Zn was categorized as low and high values, according to the median value (cut-off 113.3 μg/g). *p values (p<0.05) are from the Mann-Whitney U test than do hair sample Cu/Zn ratio [23], maybe due to the long-term reporting of the last one, which becomes less variable by external changes than blood measurements.…”

“…In this sense, bioavailability of Cu is affected by other trace element supplementation [19]. Since those interactions, represented by ratios such as serum Cu/Se, Zn/Se, but mainly Cu/Zn occur in humans and have been shown to be different in health and disease [20][21][22][23], we studied Se, Zn, and Cu ratios in relation with inflammatory-related markers without relevant findings. However, it has been described that blood Cu/Zn serves as a better supportive evidence Concentrations of total cholesterol, HDL-c, and LDL-c are means and standard deviations of the mean (n=147).…”

The economic and CO2 reduction benefits of a coal-to-olefins plant using a CO2-ECBM process and fuel substitution

“…33,34 Six gas elds, Jingbian, Daniudi, Shenmu, Sulige, Zizhou, and Yulin, with >1000 Â 10 8 m 3 of proven reserves have been found in the basin to date. 35 Table 5 presents basic information on the main gas elds in the Ordos Basin; 36,37 it can be noted that most of the elds possess low permeability and high averaged coal layer thickness, indicating that perfect gas sealing conditions are possible. In this study, no specic gas eld was identied so the CO 2 transport distance varied.…”