The relationship between the zinc nutritive status and biochemical markers of bone turnover in older European adults: the ZENITH study

• DOI: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602303
• Publication Date: 2005-10-28T11:27:01Z
• Authors: T Hill; N Meunier; M Andriollo-Sanchez; D Ciarapica; I Hininger-Favier; A Polito; J M O'Connor; C Coudray; K D Cashman
• Keywords: Bone remodeling; Pyridinoline; Deoxypyridinoline

To investigate the relationship between indices of zinc nutritive status and biochemical markers of bone turnover in older adult European subjects.Use of baseline data from a multicentre prospective zinc intervention (ZENITH) study.Centres in France, Italy and Northern Ireland.A total of 387 healthy adults, aged 55-87 y.Zinc intake was assessed by 4-day recall records. Circulating and urinary biochemical zinc status measures were assessed by atomic absorption spectrophometry. Serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin were assessed by ELISA and urinary pyridinoline (Pyr) and deoxypyridinoline (Dpyr) by HPLC.Zinc intake was negatively correlated with urinary Pyr and Dpyr (r = -0.298 and -0.304, respectively; P < 0.0001), but was not correlated with bone formation markers. There was a tendency for serum zinc to be negatively correlated with urinary Dpyr (r = -0.211; P = 0.080). Erythrocyte zinc was negatively correlated with serum osteocalcin (r = -0.090; P < 0.0001). None of the other correlations were significant. After adjustment for confounder (age, gender and research centre) the only significant association that remained was between serum osteocalcin and erythrocyte zinc (beta = -0.124; P = 0.011).There was some, albeit inconsistent, evidence of a relationship between zinc nutritive status and bone turnover in the older adult participants of the ZENITH study.