Assessment of the effects of metformin and glibenclamide on the concentration of selected trace elements in type 2 diabetic patients

Jehan A Mohammad,Fatimah Haitham Fathi,Ammar A Y Almulathanon

doi:10.3897/pharmacia.68.e72080

Abstract

Metformin and glibenclamide may have beneficial effects on the levels of trace elements in diabetic patients. The aim of the current study was to assess the effects of metformin and glibenclamide on the concentrations of copper (Cu), zinc (Zn) and magnesium (Mg) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The metformin-treated patients showed significantly lower serum Cu levels compared with the untreated and glibenclamide groups. In addition, treatment with metformin was associated with a significant increase in serum concentrations of Zn compared to the newly diagnosed patients, whereas it did not show a noticeable alteration in the serum level of Mg. In contrast, the glibenclamide treated group revealed significantly higher Zn and Mg levels compared with the newly diagnosed group, while the serum level of Cu was not significantly modified. In conclusion, treatment with metformin led to a reduction in serum Cu and an increase in serum Zn concentrations, whereas glibenclamide treatment displayed enhancement in serum Zn and Mg levels.

Highlights

Trace elements are divalent cations that play essential roles in the human body
Glibenclamide treated patients revealed significantly higher Mg levels compared with the newly diagnosed diabetics, there were no significant differences in comparison with the metformin treated group (Figure 1C)
This study aimed to investigate the effects of glibenclamide and metformin on Cu, Zn and Mg levels in type 2 diabetic patients

Summary

Introduction

Trace elements are divalent cations that play essential roles in the human body. These cations, including copper (Cu), zinc (Zn) and magnesium (Mg), are necessary for different cellular functions and the alterations in their concentrations can contribute to the development of many diseases, such as T2DM (Dosa et al, 2011, Viktorinova et al, 2009). Cu and Zn have a crucial role in the mechanisms of oxidation-reduction reactions Cu has both prooxidant and antioxidant effects through the generation of free radicals and catalyzation of the superoxide dismutase enzyme, which protects cells from superoxide radicals, respectively. Mohammad JA et al.: Effects of metformin and glibenclamide on trace elements insulin from the islet cells of the pancreas (Quraishi et al, 2005). Mg is another important trace element that has a vital role in glucose homeostasis. Taking into consideration the aforementioned findings, the present study was performed to investigate the effects of metformin versus glibenclamide on the concentrations of some trace elements (Cu, Zn, and Mg) in T2DM patients

Evaluation of serum glucose and insulin

Results

Discussion

Conclusion