C. J. Mateos

Plasma Mineral Content in Type-2 Diabetic Patients and Their Association with the Metabolic Syndrome

Background: Metabolic syndrome is a clinical disorder that is becoming more prevalent in Spain. The syndrome encompasses a set of metabolic disorders such as type-2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and obesity, which may be associated with variations in serum levels and poor delivery of certain mineral elements. Methods: This study attempted to ascertain whether metabolic syndrome might be linked to alterations in serum levels of the mineral elements magnesium, copper, zinc, chromium, and nickel in a population of 92 diabetic subjects, some suffering from certain conditions associated with the metabolic syndrome, and 72 control subjects (Hospital Príncipe de Asturias, Alcalá de Henares, Spain). Results: The results indicated that as a group the alterations implicated in metabolic syndrome were indeed associated with variations in blood levels of the mineral elements considered, though statistically significant differences were recorded only in the case of copper. Still, trends in mineral levels for each of the separate components contributing to the syndrome tended to increase. Conclusion: Metabolic complications appear to be associated with alterations in the levels of some minerals, especially copper.

Effect of Diabetes on the Tissular Zn/Cu Ratio

One of the parameters related to the development of coronary disease in diabetic patients is the tissular Zn/Cu ratio. We evaluated the levels of Zn and Cu, and the Zn/Cu ratio in insulin target tissues in diabetic and normoglucemic growing Wistar rats in order to determine the influence of diabetes and the disease evolution period. Diabetes was induced chemically by administration of streptozotocin. In order to determine the influence of the duration of diabetes on the Zn/Cu ratio, three time periods were studied: 7, 21 and 60 days. The animals were subsequently sacrificed and the target tissues (liver, adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle) were removed. Zn and Cu levels were measured by AAS after wet mineralization. STZ-induced diabetes modified the tissular Zn and Cu content. There was a significant decrease (p < 0.01) in liver and adipose tissue, but not in skeletal muscle. The in adipose tissue and skeletal muscle, but not in liver, effects were dependent on the duration of diabetes. The Cu content was higher in the liver of diabetic rats (p < 0.1) and lower in adipose tissue (p < 0.1) and skeletal muscle (NS). Tissular Cu levels also were affected significantly by the duration of diabetes. The Zn/Cu ratio showed a generalized decrease, except in skeletal muscle. This decrease was dependent on the presence of diabetes mellitus and the duration of the disease (p < 0.01).

Determination of chromium in cerebrospinal fluid using electrothermal atomisation atomic absorption spectrometry.

A rapid method to determine the chromium content of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples using electrothermal atomization atomic absorption spectrometry (ETA-AAS) with deuterium-arc background correction is described. The chromium concentration in CSF was evaluated by the standard addition method. Sample dilution (1 + 1) with 0.25% (m/v) Triton X-100 and 4.5% (v/v) HNO3 gave the best combination of sensitivity, reproducibility, and low blank reading compared with dilution using other solvents. Within-batch reproducibility was 3.2% for 20 CSF samples, between-batch reproducibility was 4.7%. CSF samples from 43 healthy volunteers collected in a manner designed to avoid contamination yielded chromium concentrations of 14.6 +/- 6.3 ng mL(-1).