Relationships Between Indicators of Metabolic Disorders and Selected Concentrations of Bioelements and Lead in Serum and Bone Tissue in Aging Men

Abstract

Background

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between serum and bone concentrations of selected bioelements, ie, zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), chrome (Cr), magnesium (Mg), and selenium (Se), and a heavy metal, ie, lead (Pb), and the selected indicators of metabolic disorders - Visceral Adiposity Index (VAI), Lipid Accumulation Product (LAP) and Body Mass Index (BMI).

Material and Methods

The study comprised 151 men aged 60 to 75 years who were scheduled for hip replacement surgery due to osteoarthritis. The concentrations of elements in the serum and bone tissue were measured using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (Mg, Zn, Cu, Cr, Fe, and Pb) and the spectrofluorometric method (Se). Fasting plasma glucose (FPG), high-density cholesterol (HDL-Ch), and triacylglycerols (TAG) were determined. Lipid accumulation product (LAP) and visceral adiposity index (VAI) were calculated.

Results

There was no relationship between serum and bone concentrations of bioelements and lead and the BMI index. Bone Mg was significantly higher in men with higher VAI, but no such relation was observed in the serum. Similarly, bone Mg and Zn were higher in patients with higher LAP, which was not observed in the serum. Multivariate logistic regression analysis with adjustment for age was performed. There was a correlation between serum Zn concentration and the cut-off point for VAI. The cut-off point for LAP was related to the bone tissue concentrations of Mg, Zn, and Cu.

Conclusion

We found some relationships between the concentrations of selected bioelements and Pb and VAI, LAP, and BMI in bone but not in the serum. VAI positively correlated with bone Mg, while LAP positively correlated with bone Cu, Zn, and Mg.

Keywords:

• aging men
• indicators of fat accumulation
• adiposity
• metabolic disorders
• bone tissue
• bioelements

Institutional Review Board Statement

The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki. The research protocol was approved by the Bioethical Committee of the Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin (approval no. KB-0012/155/16).

Informed Consent Statement

Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

Disclosure

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This research project was supported by the MINIATURA 2 grant funded by the National Science Centre of Poland (grant no. 2018/02/X/NZ4/00128) and the statutory research grant from the Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin, Poland.