Metals and oxidative stress in Parkinson's disease from industrial arease with exposition to environmental toxins or metal pollution

Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by a progressive degeneration of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway resulting in movement disorders. PD is a complex disease, in which and environmental factors, as exposure to toxins or metals coul be involved. Objective: To assess if serum metals (Cu, Fe, Zn), biological variables of their metabolism, total peroxides and antioxidants were abnormal in PD, in relation to environmental exposure. Methods: We compared levels of serum copper, iron, zinc, ceruloplasmin and transferrin, peroxides, antioxidants(TRAP) in 65 PD patients coming from an Industrial zone highly exposed to metal pollution (Valcamonica) with measures from 28 PD patients from no metal pollution areas of the province of Brescia and 52 healthy controls coming from Valcamonica and 24 from the province of Brescia. Results: PD patients had higher serum concentration of zinc than controls. Only in PD patients coming from Valcamonica levels of Cu were higher than in subjects coming from the province of Brescia. Moreover, In patients with PD levels of sieric Cu significantly correlated with score of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UDPRS). Conclusions: Zinc seems to be higher in PD independently from the exposition to metal pollution. Perturbation of copper metabolism in PD seems to be related to exposition to environmental toxins or metal pollution and coul be involved in the progression of the disease itself