Zinc metabolism in healthy men and in patients with chronic bacterial prostatitis

Abstract

Introduction: Zinc is a vital trace element, which regulates metabolism of a prostate gland. It has been established that a low plasma zinc level in men increases the risk of chronic prostatitis and vice versa, chronic prostatitis is often accompanied by zinc deficiency in the prostate gland. The purpose of this study is to research the features and possible correlations of zinc metabolism disorders at systemic (in blood) and local (in prostatic fluid) levels in healthy men and patients with chronic bacterial prostatitis (CBP).

Materials and methods: Ninety patients with CBP (main group) and thirty healthy men (control group) were random­ized by age (mean age 38.5±2.9 years) and examined. In addition to standard examinations, the zinc levels in blood serum and prostatic fluid were determined, and the oxidative status of the prostate gland was assessed (the level of reac­tive oxygen species (ROS), conjugated dienes, malondialdehyde, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in the prostatic fluid) according to standard methods.

Results and discussion: In patients with CBP, the absolute deficiency of plasma and prostatic zinc was detected 2.89 and 2.5 times more often, respectively, than in healthy men (p < 0.05). At the same time, both the patients with CBP and healthy men had significant correlations between plasma zinc and zinc in prostatic fluid (r = 0.345; n = 37; p = 0.001 and r = 0.156; n = 30; p = 0.001; respectively). A significant positive correlation between the zinc level and the activity of SOD in prostatic fluid was revealed only in the patients with CBP (r = 0.389; n = 90; p = 0.001).

Conclusion: Zinc concentration in blood plasma does not objectively reflect zinc metabolism disorders in the prostate gland, and therefore the determination of zinc in prostatic fluid is the most reliable and sensitive method for assessing zink disorders in patients with CBP.