Evaluation of selected factors induced by antioxidative activity in serum of cigarette smokers and in patients with early phase emphysema

: We investigated the concentration of ceruloplasmin (CP), transferrin (T) and metal ions (Cu, Zn) in serum of healthy smokers, emphysema patients and healty non-smoking subjects (control). We observed elevated Cu concentration in smokers and emphysema patients. Elevated CP concentration was observed only in those emphysema patients who smoked cigarettes, but not in healthy smokers. This observation excludes the possibility of compensative CP and Cu increase as the effect of chronic oxidant exposure. Changes in concentration of CP and Cu observed by us are probably due to chronic inflammation of respiratory tract not only of emphysema patients but also of chronic smokers without signs of the disease.