Lipid peroxidation assessed by serum thiobarbituric acid reactive substances in healthy subjects and in patients with pathologies known to affect trace element status.

Serum thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), Zn, Cu, and Se concentrations were determined in 47 healthy adults and in patients with diseases, such as renal insufficiency, insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, chronic pancreatitis, liver cirrhosis, or cancer, in order to clarify the relationship between this indicator of lipid peroxidation and antioxidative trace element status. TBARS levels were higher than control values in all pathological cases, except in cancer patients. Cu levels in patients highly correlated with ferroxidase ceruloplasmin activity (r = 0.86), but were only statistically different from controls in diabetics. Zn levels were lower than normal in dialysis, liver cirrhosis, and cancer patients. Se levels were significantly decreased in all pathological cases. Half of the subjects with liver cirrhosis or renal insufficiency and 3/4 of chronic pancreatitis or cancer patients had an active inflammatory process. Despite intense modifications in determined indicators, no clear correlation could be demonstrated between the different parameters. Basic antioxidative trace element status and inflammation are therefore not major determinants of TBARS levels in normal and in pathological conditions, despite of the frequent association of low serum Zn and mainly low serum Se with high TBARS levels.