Effect of penicillamine and zinc on iron metabolism in Wilson's disease.

Author(s): Medici V, Di Leo V, Lamboglia F, Bowlus CL, Tseng SC, D'Inca R, Irato P, Burra P, Martines D, Sturniolo GC

Affiliation(s): Department of Surgical and Gastroenterological Sciences, Section of Gastroenterology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy. valentina.medici@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu

Publication date & source: 2007-12, Scand J Gastroenterol., 42(12):1495-500.

Publication type:

OBJECTIVE: The physiology of iron metabolism in Wilson's disease is largely unknown, and there is a paucity of data on the real presence and progression of iron accumulation. The purpose of this study was to assess the iron metabolism parameters, including hepatic iron concentration, in follow-up liver biopsies and serum, and urinary pro-hepcidin. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-three Wilson's disease patients undergoing long-term treatment were enrolled in the study. RESULTS: Hepatic iron content was significantly increased in penicillamine-treated patients compared with zinc-treated patients. Serum and urinary pro-hepcidin concentrations were significantly higher in Wilson's disease patients than in healthy volunteers, despite a normal biochemical pattern of iron metabolism. CONCLUSIONS: Long-term penicillamine treatment seems to be responsible for a more marked iron accumulation in the liver. This observation may justify a revision of long-term Wilson's disease treatment modalities with penicillamine. The finding that serum and urinary pro-hepcidin is significantly increased in Wilson's disease patients compared with healthy volunteers suggests a role for hepcidin in iron metabolism in Wilson's disease, but this needs to be confirmed by a study of hepatic hepcidin expression in these patients.