Department of Environment and Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
Department of Biomedical Sciences-Histology, University of Sassari, Sassari, Italy.
Neurol Sci. 2017 Sep;38(9):1609-1615. doi: 10.1007/s10072-017-3018-2. Epub 2017 Jun 10.
Sardinian (Italy) island population has a uniquely high incidence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Essential trace element levels in blood, hair, and urine of ALS Sardinian patients were investigated in search of valid biomarkers to recognize and predict ALS. Six elements (Ca, Cu, Fe, Mg, Se, and Zn) were measured in 34 patients compared to 30 age- and sex-matched healthy controls by a validated method. Levels of Ca and Cu in blood and of Se and Zn in hair were significantly higher in ALS than in controls, while urinary excretion of Mg and Se was significantly decreased. The selected cut-off concentrations for these biomarkers may distinguish patients with or without ALS with sufficient sensitivity and specificity. Many positive (as Se-Cu and Se-Zn) and negative associations (as Ca-Mg and Ca-Zn) between elements suggested that multiple metals involved in multiple mechanisms have a role in the ALS degeneration.
撒丁岛（意大利）的岛民群体患有肌萎缩侧索硬化症（ALS）的比例非常高。本研究调查了 ALS 撒丁岛患者血液、头发和尿液中的必需微量元素水平，以期寻找有效的生物标志物来识别和预测 ALS。通过验证过的方法，我们在 34 名患者和 30 名年龄和性别匹配的健康对照者中测量了 6 种元素（Ca、Cu、Fe、Mg、Se 和 Zn）。与对照组相比，ALS 患者血液中的 Ca 和 Cu 以及头发中的 Se 和 Zn 水平明显更高，而尿液中 Mg 和 Se 的排泄量明显降低。这些生物标志物的选定临界浓度可以区分具有或不具有 ALS 的患者，其灵敏度和特异性都足够高。元素之间存在许多阳性（如 Se-Cu 和 Se-Zn）和阴性关联（如 Ca-Mg 和 Ca-Zn），这表明多种金属涉及多种机制，在 ALS 变性中发挥作用。
