Tag: selenium

Autoantibodies to Selenoprotein P in Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Suggest Selenium Transport Impairment and Acquired Resistance to Thyroid Hormone

Abstract:

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) presents with symptoms similar to hypothyroidism, including mental and physical fatigue, poor sleep, depression, and anxiety. However, the typical thyroid hormone (TH) profile of elevated thyrotropin (TSH) and low thyroxine (T4) is not observed. Recently, autoantibodies to the selenium transporter SELENOP (SELENOP-aAb) have been identified in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and shown to impair selenium transport and selenoprotein expression. We hypothesized that SELENOP-aAb are prevalent in CFS and impair TH metabolism.

Selenium status in CFS (n=167) was compared to that of healthy controls (n=545). Two additional small groups were included, namely patients with fibromyalgia (FM; n=39), a disease often comorbid with CFS, and patients with post-COVID condition (n=24). The serum/plasma Se biomarkers total Se, glutathione peroxidase (GPx3) and SELENOP levels showed linear correlations without reaching saturation, indicative of Se deficiency. TSH and total T4 levels fitted within normal ranges, but relative total T3 (%TT3) was low, and relative rT3 (%rT3) was elevated in CFS. SELENOP-aAb prevalence was 9.6-15.6% in CFS versus 0.9-2.0% in controls, depending on cut-off for positivity.

An impairment of Se transport in SELENOP-aAb positive CFS patients is suggested by the lack of correlation between total Se and GPx3 activity. The same patients present with disturbed TH parameters, including low deiodinase (DIO) activity (SPINA-GD index) and particularly low urinary iodine as compared to controls (43.2 (16.0) vs. 89.0 (54.9) µg/L, P<0.001), indicating that SELENOP-aAb affect TH deiodination and iodine excretion.

We conclude that a considerable subset of CFS patients express SELENOP-aAb that disturb Se transport and cause low GPx3 and DIO activities. Hereby, TH deiodination decreases as an acquired condition that is not readily reflected by TSH or T4 in blood. This hypothesis opens new explanations and therapeutic options for SELENOP-aAb positive CFS and, perhaps, post-COVID condition patients, but requires additional clinical evidence from intervention trials.

Source: Sun, Qian and Oltra, Elisa and Dijck-Brouwer, D. A. Janneke and Chillon, Thilo Samson and Seemann, Petra and Asaad, Sabrina and Demircan, Kamil and Espejo-Oltra, José Andrés and Sánchez-Fito, Teresa and Martin-Martinez, Eva and Minich, Waldemar B. and Muskiet, Frits A. J. and Schomburg, Lutz, Autoantibodies to Selenoprotein P in Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Suggest Selenium Transport Impairment and Acquired Resistance to Thyroid Hormone. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4332223 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4332223 (Full text available as PDF file)

Nutritional deficiencies that may predispose to long COVID

Abstract:

Multiple nutritional deficiencies (MND) confound studies designed to assess the role of a single nutrient in contributing to the initiation and progression of disease states. Despite the perception of many healthcare practitioners, up to 25% of Americans are deficient in five-or-more essential nutrients. Stress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic further increases the prevalence of deficiency states. Viral infections compete for crucial nutrients with immune cells. Viral replication and proliferation of immunocompetent cells critical to the host response require these essential nutrients, including zinc. Clinical studies have linked levels of more than 22 different dietary components to the likelihood of COVID-19 infection and the severity of the disease. People at higher risk of infection due to MND are also more likely to have long-term sequelae, known as Long COVID.

Source: Schloss, J.V. Nutritional deficiencies that may predispose to long COVID. Inflammopharmacol (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10787-023-01183-3 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10787-023-01183-3 (Full text)

Does Dietary Coenzyme Q10 plus Selenium Supplementation Ameliorate Clinical Outcomes by Modulating Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Individuals with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome?

Abstract:

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a neuroinflammatory, multifaceted chronic disorder of unknown cause. Accumulating data indicates a link between a redox imbalance, mitochondrial dysfunction, and inflammation status in ME/CFS. CoQ10 and selenium as effective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents have shown potential clinical implications in chronic diseases; however, their therapeutic benefits on ME/CFS remain elusive.

This open-label exploratory study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of combined CoQ10 plus selenium supplementation on clinical features and circulating biomarkers in ME/CFS. Twenty-seven ME/CFS patients received an oral combination of 400 mg of CoQ10 and 200 µg of selenium daily for 8-weeks. The primary endpoint was patient-reported changes in outcome measures from baseline to 8 weeks post-intervention.

Secondary endpoint included changes in circulating biomarkers from baseline to each participant. After an 8-week intervention, a significant improvement was found for overall fatigue severity (p = 0.021) and global quality of life (p = 0.002), while there was no significant effect on the sleep disturbances (p = 0.480) among participants. After 8-weeks’ intervention, there was significantly increased total antioxidant capacity, and there were reduced lipoperoxides levels from the participants (p < 0.0001 for both). Circulating cytokine levels decreased significantly (p < 0.01 for all), but with no significant changes on the CRP, FGF21, and NT-proBNP biomarkers after supplementation.

Based on these findings, we hypothesized that long-term supplementation of combined CoQ10 and selenium may indicate a potentially beneficial synergistic effect in ME/CFS.

Source: Castro-Marrero J, Domingo JC, Cordobilla B, Ferrer R, Giralt M, Sanmartin-Sentañes R, Alegre-Martin J. Does Dietary Coenzyme Q10 plus Selenium Supplementation Ameliorate Clinical Outcomes by Modulating Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Individuals with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome? Antioxid Redox Signal. 2022 Mar 1. doi: 10.1089/ars.2022.0018. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35229657. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35229657/

Therapeutic Effect and Metabolic Mechanism of A Selenium-Polysaccharide from Ziyang Green Tea on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Abstract:

Ziyang green tea was considered a medicine food homology plant to improve chronic fatigue Ssyndrome (CFS) in China. The aim of this research was to study the therapeutic effect of selenium-polysaccharides (Se-TP) from Ziyang green tea on CFS and explore its metabolic mechanism.

A CFS-rats model was established in the present research and Se-TP was administrated to evaluate the therapeutic effect on CFS. Some serum metabolites including blood urea nitrogen (BUN), blood lactate acid (BLA), corticosterone (CORT), and aldosterone (ALD) were checked. Urine metabolites were analyzed via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Multivariate statistical analysis was also used to check the data. The results selected biomarkers that were entered into the MetPA database to analyze their corresponding metabolic pathways.

The results demonstrated that Se-TP markedly improved the level of BUN and CORT in CFS rats. A total of eight differential metabolites were detected in GC-MS analysis, which were benzoic acid, itaconic acid, glutaric acid, 4-acetamidobutyric acid, creatine, 2-hydroxy-3-isopropylbutanedioic acid, l-dopa, and 21-hydroxypregnenolone. These differential metabolites were entered into the MetPA database to search for the corresponding metabolic pathways and three related metabolic pathways were screened out. The first pathway was steroid hormone biosynthesis. The second was tyrosine metabolism, and the third was arginine-proline metabolism. The 21-hydroxypregnenolone level of rats in the CFS group markedly increased after the Se-TP administration.

In conclusion, Se-TP treatments on CFS rats improved their condition. Its metabolic mechanism was closely related to that which regulates the steroid hormone biosynthesis.

Source: Shao C, Song J, Zhao S, Jiang H, Wang B, Chi A. Therapeutic Effect and Metabolic Mechanism of A Selenium-Polysaccharide from Ziyang Green Tea on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Polymers (Basel). 2018 Nov 15;10(11). pii: E1269. doi: 10.3390/polym10111269. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6401680/ (Full article)