Serum molybdenum in diseases of the liver and biliary system.

We determined the serum molybdenum concentration by neutron activation analysis in apparently healthy subjects and in patients with diseases of the liver and biliary system. The level was found to be markedly elevated in the initial phase of acute viral hepatitis (mean +/- S.D. 3.10 +/- 1.46 ng/ml vs. 0.55 +/- 0.21 in controls) and to return to normal during convalescence, in parallel with the liver function tests. The most significant correlations were found between the serum molybdenum concentration and the serum levels of GOT ( r = 0.710, p less than 0.001) and GPT (r = 0.683, p less than 0.001). Besides, the serum molybdenum level (mean +/- S.D.) was observed to be definitely increased in patients with HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis (0.97 +/- 0.49 ng/ml), HBsAg-positive liver cirrhosis (1.01 +/- 0.50), alcoholic liver disease (1.32 +/- 0.56), liver metastases (1.40 +/-0.39), gallstones (1.28 +/- 0.38), tumors of the gallbladder or extrahepatic bile ducts (1.64 +/- 0.44), and carcinoma of the head of the pancreas (1.61 +/- 0.91). Finally, the serum molybdenum level was found to be raised in two patients with primary biliary cirrhosis and in two out of four patients with drug-induced liver injury. The etiologic mechanism and the clinical importance of the observed abnormality remain to be established. Our study enlarges the existing information concerning the disorders of trace element metabolism in liver diseases.