Department of Family Medicine, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam 13496, Republic of Korea.
Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Hepatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam 13496, Republic of Korea.
J Trace Elem Med Biol. 2018 Dec;50:28-33. doi: 10.1016/j.jtemb.2018.06.001. Epub 2018 Jun 2.
Copper, an essential micronutrient, is required for lipid metabolism, mitochondrial function, iron metabolism, and antioxidant defense. Copper deficiency has been linked to alterations in lipid metabolism and various metabolic processes of the liver, including nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD); however, most of these studies relied on copper measurements in the blood or tissues. In this study, we investigated the association between hair copper concentration and NAFLD in Korean adults, independent of metabolic syndrome status. Clinical and laboratory parameters, including factors of metabolic syndrome, were analyzed in 751 Korean adults divided into quintiles, according to hair copper concentration. Lower hair copper concentration was significantly correlated with higher body mass index, waist circumference, blood pressure, and lower levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Subjects with NAFLD showed significantly lower hair copper concentrations, and the risk of NAFLD was significantly higher for the lower hair copper quintile groups even after adjusting for metabolic syndrome-related factors. Overall, this study suggests that lower hair copper concentration could be associated with NAFLD, independent of metabolic syndrome factors.
铜是一种必需的微量元素，对于脂质代谢、线粒体功能、铁代谢和抗氧化防御至关重要。铜缺乏与脂质代谢的改变以及肝脏的各种代谢过程有关，包括非酒精性脂肪肝疾病（NAFLD）；然而，这些研究大多依赖于血液或组织中的铜测量。在这项研究中，我们调查了韩国成年人中头发铜浓度与 NAFLD 之间的关联，独立于代谢综合征状态。根据头发铜浓度，将 751 名韩国成年人分为五组，分析了临床和实验室参数，包括代谢综合征的因素。较低的头发铜浓度与较高的体重指数、腰围、血压和较低的高密度脂蛋白胆固醇水平显著相关。NAFLD 患者的头发铜浓度明显较低，即使调整了与代谢综合征相关的因素，头发铜浓度较低的五组发生 NAFLD 的风险也明显更高。总的来说，这项研究表明，头发铜浓度较低可能与 NAFLD 有关，独立于代谢综合征因素。
