The Concentrations of Four Metal Ions in Tumor and Non-tumor Regions of Livers from Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma

YANN-JEN FANN, *KUAN RONG LEE, **SAN-KAN LEE, **YUNG-JEN HO AND **JUNG-HO CHEN

National Laboratories of Foods and Drugs, Department of Health, Executive Yuan
161-2, Kuen Yang Street, Nankang, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
*Institute of Life Science, National Tsing Hua University,Hsin-Chu, Taiwan, R.O.C.
**Department of Radiology, Taichung Veterans General Hospital,Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C.  

ABSTRACT

   The concentrations of Zn, Mn, Fe, Cu in tumor and non-tumor regions from human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) specimens were measured by ICP-AES. Resected liver tissues from eighteen patients with HCC were collected for this study. Lower zinc and manganese ion concentrations were demonstrated in tumor regions (Zn+2,p <0.05;Mn+2,P<0.0005). It might indicate lower activities of some glucose metabolic enzymes in HCC tumor tissues, such as lactate dehydrogenase, glucokinase and pyruvate dehydrogenase. No significant differences in the concentrations of iron (P=0.78) and copper (P=0.12) ions between tumor and non-tumor regions were found.

Key words: hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), ICP-AES