title: Serum zinc and angiotensin-converting enzyme levels in patients with lung cancer.
abstract: Forty-two patients with lung cancer and 72 healthy subjects were studied in order to determine a possible relationship between serum zinc and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), a peptidyl dipeptide hydrolase. Serum zinc levels were 105 +/- 21 micrograms/dl in control subjects and 50 +/- 19 micrograms/dl in patients, and angiotensin-converting enzyme activity was 296 +/- 28 U/l in the former and 240 +/- 55 U/l in the latter using hippurylglycylglycine as a substrate. The findings obtained show that the decreased levels of angiotensin-converting enzyme may be related to decreased serum zinc levels and that the primary defect may be the zinc deficiency in these patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Medical School, Atatürk University, Erzurum, Turkey.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bakan
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bakan
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Süerdem
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Yiğitoğlu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000201:enzymology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A / Q000097:blood*; D012016:Reference Values; D015032:Zinc / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A; D015032:Zinc