Monica Daniela Doşa 1, Doina Catrinoiu 2, L.T. Hangan 3, Cristina Galeş 4, M. Nechifor 5
1 Pharmacology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ovidius University Constanţa, PhD student at Gr.T.Popa
University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iaşi
2 Clinic of Diabetes, Nutrition and Metabolic Diseases Department, Clinical County Emergency Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Ovidius University Constanţa
3 Medical Informatics and Biostatistics Department, Faculty of Medicine , Ovidius University Constanţa
4 Histology Department, GR.T.Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iaşi
5 Pharmacology Department, UMF GR.T.Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy Iaşi
Abstract
We have studied the plasmatic and urinary concentration of copper in a group of adult patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). Our study enrolled 30 patients with NIDDM, naïve for antidiabetic medication, recruited from the Diabetes, Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases Clinic of Faculty of Medicine Constanţa. The patients received treatment with Metformin, 1000 mg/day. We measured the plasmatic and urinary concentration of copper (Cu) and the concentrations of: glucose (Gl), HDL, LDL, cholesterol (Col), triglycerides (Tg), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), before and after 3 months of treatment. The same measurements were performed on a control group (CG) of healthy adults of both genders. The results were statistically interpreted. The data revealed a significant difference in the plasmatic concentration of copper, the NIDDM group displaying higher values than those in the control group (111,91+/-20,98 vs. 96,33+/- 8,56 μg/dl, p<0,001) prior to the administration of Metformin. The treatment with Metformin for 3 months did not significantly modify the plasmatic concentration of copper (111,91+/-20,98 vs. 101,23+/-21,73 μg/dl) nor the urinary concentration of this cation (53,35+/- 23,79 vs. 51,70+/- 22,13 μg/24h). The plasmatic concentration of copper positively correlated with the levels of HbA1c, triglycerides and cholesterol.