Free Radic Res. 2005 Mar;39(3):337-42. Related Articles, Links
The association between serum ferritin and uric acid in humans.
Ghio AJ, Ford ES, Kennedy TP, Hoidal JR.
National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory Office of
Research and Development, Environmental Protection Agency Research
Triangle Park, NC 27711 USA.
Objective: Urate forms a coordination complex with Fe(3+) which does
not support electron transport. The only enzymatic source of urate is
xanthine oxidoreductase. If a major purpose of xanthine oxidoreductase
is the production of urate to function as an iron chelator and
antioxidant, a system for coupling the activity of this enzyme to the
availability of catalytically-active metal would be required. We tested
the hypothesis that there is an association between iron availability
and urate production in healthy humans by correlating serum
concentrations of ferritin with uric acid levels. Materials and
methods: The study population included 4932 females and 4794 males in
the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III. They were 20
years of age or older and in good health. Results: Serum concentrations
of ferritin correlated positively with uric acid levels in healthy
individuals. This association was independent of an effect of gender,
age, race/ethnic group, body mass, and alcohol consumption.
Conclusions: The relationship between serum ferritin and uric acid
predicts hyperuricemia and gout in groups with iron accumulation. This
elevation in the production of uric acid with increased concentrations
of iron could possibly reflect a response of the host to diminish the
oxidative stress presented by available metal as the uric acid assumes
the empty or loosely bound coordination sites of the iron to diminish
electron transport and subsequent oxidant generation.
PMID: 15788238 [PubMed - in process]
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