Plasma Uric Acid and Total Antioxidant Status in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Abnormalities of antioxidant defence systems have been reported in both experimentally-induced diabetes and in patients with diabetes mellitus (1). These abnormalities have been often attributed to the disturbances in micronutrient metabolism and less attention has been dedicated to uric acid, although this ubiquitous endogenous compound with powerful antioxidant properties was proposed to play a key role in the antioxidant protection in humans (2). Data from epidemiological surveys have demonstrated that diabetes mellitus, in the absence of nephropathy, is associated with decreased uric acid levels (3). Although the uricosuric effect of hyperglycemia was suggested to play a role in the uric acid reduction (4), evidence on the mechanisms influencing uric acid levels in diabetes mellitus is still scanty. In the present study we investigated the levels of uric acid in relation to the total plasma antioxidant status in patients with diabetes mellitus. [