investigating the relationship between serum zinc levels and red blood cell indices in anemic patients referred to the laboratories in gorgan, iran

Background: bivalent minerals function as crucial cofactors that participate in a multitude of metabolic pathways within the organism. specifically, zinc (zn) assumes catalytic, structural, and regulatory roles in numerous biological processes. a severe deficiency in zn can lead to disruptions in nucleic acid and protein synthesis, impaired cellular proliferation, increased apoptosis, and heightened lipid peroxidation of cellular membranes, a phenomenon associated with a reduced lifespan of red blood cells (rbcs). the objective of this study was to investigate the correlations between zn status and various erythrocyte indices in a cohort of anemic patients, in comparison to a control group. methods: a cohort of 563 participants was enrolled in this investigation. serum zn concentration was quantified using a bt-3500 autoanalyzer, while hematological indices were determined via a sysmex kx21n cell counter. following confirmation of data normality, spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was employed to analyze the relationship between serum zn levels and rbc indices. results: the mean serum zn concentration was 102.8 ± 17.6 mg/dl. serum zn levels exhibited a weak correlation with rbc and hemoglobin (hb) concentrations in healthy women, as well as a weak correlation with mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (mchc) in anemic men (p < 0.05). furthermore, the results indicated significantly higher serum zn levels, rbc, hb, hematocrite (hct), and mchc in men (p < 0.01), while mean corpuscular volume (mcv) was significantly higher in women (p < 0.01). notably, in individuals with serum zn levels < 30 mg/dl, mchc (p < 0.01) and rbc (p < 0.05) were elevated, whereas hb (p < 0.05), hct, mcv, and mch (p < 0.01) were higher than 30. conclusion: considering the potential impact of varying zn concentrations on erythrocyte indices, including hb and mchc, in both healthy and anemic individuals, careful regulation of its dosage is warranted.