The Role of Trace Elements in Pseudoexfoliation Syndrome: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Purpose: Pseudoexfoliation syndrome (PXF) is an age-related condition, characterized by deposition of whitish flake-shaped materials in the anterior segment of the eye. Although it occurs all over the world, a considerable racial variation exists. According to the high frequency of PXF in Iran and the importance of prevention and early treatment, we evaluated the plasma level of iron, zinc, copper, and magnesium in patients with PXF.
 Methods: In this study, 83 individuals were enrolled; 40 patients with cataract and PXF as the case group and 43 age- and sex-matched individuals with cataract but without PXF as the control group. The serum levels of the mentioned microelements were compared in two groups.
 Results: In the case group, 25 (62.5%) male and 15 (37.5%) female subjects participated. In the control group, the corresponding figures were 22 (51.2%) and 21 (48.8%), respectively. The mean age of the case group was 66.07 ± 9.46 and that for the control group was 66.88 ± 8.04 years. Regarding the case group, the serum levels of iron, zinc, copper, and magnesium were 60.58 ± 21.04, 84.7 ± 14.37, 120.23 ± 14.43, and 2.11 ± 0.23, respectively. These serum levels in the control group were 89.07 ± 26.06, 97.51 ± 17.42, 123.33 ± 19.01, and 2.14 ± 0.16. The serum levels of iron and zinc were significantly lower in the case group than the control group (P < 0.0001); however, such a difference was not observed in terms of copper and magnesium serum levels.
 Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that the serum iron and zinc levels were lower in PXF patients. Nutritional deficiency may be a cause of zonular weakness in these patients. Heme is a cofactor for the enzyme which contributes to the biosynthesis of fibrillin, the major protein in zonular fibers. Therefore, iron can play a substantial role in the biosynthesis of the fibrils and also in the zonular stability.

Selenium intake help prevent age-related cataract formation: Evidence from NHANES 2001–2008

“…Oxidative stress mechanism played an important role in the pathological process of cataract, in which iron, zinc, copper were involved (58)(59)(60)(61)(62)(63)(64). However, the relationship between these three trace elements and cataract could not be well confirmed in the current study (62,(65)(66)(67)(68)(69)(70)(71). This is consistent with our study, which perhaps indicated that the intake of these three trace elements had a negligible relationship with cataract.…”

Relationship between Pseudoexfoliation Syndrome/Glaucoma and Serum Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, Folate, Iron Parameters and Inflammation Markers: Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study

“…Talebnejad ve ark.nın PES'li hastalarda yapmış olduğu çalışmada; PES grubunun serum demir oranları kontrol grubuna göre düşük bulunmuştur. 24 Cumurcu ve ark.nın Türk popülasyon üzerinde yapmış olduğu çalışmada ise PES grubunun hümör aköz örneklerindeki demir seviyesi kontrol grubuna göre farklılık göstermezken; serum demir düzeyleri kontrol grubuna göre anlamlı yüksek bulunmuştur. 25 Çalışmamızda ise PES/PEG grubunun serum demir düzeyi, TIBC, UIBC ile kontrol grubunun sonuçları arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir fark bulunmadı.…”