Decreased hepatic copper levels. A possible chemical marker for the pathogenesis of aortic aneurysms in man
M. D. Tilson
The spontaneously aneurysm-prone Blotchy mouse has a mutation on the X
chromosome resulting in low hepatic copper levels; and copper is an
essential cofactor for lysyl oxidase, which catalyzes reactions leading to
the cross-linking of collagen and elastin. Population characteristics and
family histories of patients with aneurysms suggest that aneurysmal disease
may also be sex linked in man. Hepatic copper levels were determined in 13
patients who died with abdominal aortic aneurysms and in 13 control
patients selected on the criterion of severe atherosclerotic occlusive
disease of the abdominal aorta. Excluding two patients with severe liver
disease, the tissue copper level in the patients with aneurysms was only
26% of the control level. The results suggest that additional studies of
the biologic markers for aneurysm formation in the Blotchy mouse should be
carried out prospectively in human subjects.
