Influence of Diet and Inflammation on Serum Copper Enzymes

Abstract

Copper is believed to function primarily as a catalyst in copper metalloenzymes. A number of these enzymes perform functions which in principle should protect against tissue injury caused by stress such as inflammation. Three types of observations support the notion that copper enzymes work against stress induced tissue damage. First, dietary copper restriction reduces activity levels of several copper metalloenzymes while increasing susceptibility to injury (1). For instance, copper deficient rats show especially high sensitivity to CC1, hepatoxicity (2) and adjuvant arthritis stimulated footpaw swelling (3). A second set of observations implying a protective role for copper enzymes is the linking of many stress states with elevated serum levels of the copper protein ceruloplasmin (4). These elevations have been hypothesized to represent an attempt to minimize stress-induced tissue damage.