Here is the latest on the subject:
- A Russian group found that increases in serum copper as well as Cu/Zn serum ratios correlated with covid-19 severity [1]
- A Chinese group looked at urinary trace element Levels in 210 urine specimens from the 138 severe and non-severe patients with COVID-19. [2] The reference range for Cu is [4.00–21.42] μg/L. Urine Cu was 15.84 (10.48–20.68) in mid Covid cases and 32.14 (17.22–75.43) in severe Covid cases. Urine Cu was significantly elevated in severe Covid (p <0.001). [2] When the trace elements in the urine were adjusted for creatinine, even more copper was being lost in the urine in severe Covid-19 cases. Accounting for glomerular filtration, Cu amounts were reported relative to creatinine. [2] The reference range is [4.39–13.37] μg/g creatinine. Average Cu (and range) in mid versus severe Covid were 15.55 (12.41–20.45) and 77.71 (32.04–248.28) μg/g creatine, respectively. (p < 0.001). Urinary creatinine-adjusted copper of ≥25.57 μg/g and ≥99.32 μg/g were associated with significantly increased risk of severe illness and fatal outcome in COVID-19, respectively.
- A German group found that serum copper was higher in patients who were released from the hospital versus those that died. [3] No change was seen in ceruloplasmin. A caveat is that the ceruloplasmin activity was not measured.
The German [3] and Russian [1] groups reported different control ranges for serum copper. The Chinese report suggests that large amounts of copper may be lost in the urine in severe Covid. [2] Could copper loading of ceruloplasmin be compromised in severe Covid?
References
- Skalny, A. V., Timashev, P. S., Aschner, M., Aaseth, J., Chernova, L. N., Belyaev, V. E., Grabeklis, A. R., Notova, S. V., Lobinski, R., Tsatsakis, A., Svistunov, A. A., Fomin, V. V., Tinkov, A. A., & Glybochko, P. V. (2021). Serum Zinc, Copper, and Other Biometals Are Associated with COVID-19 Severity Markers. Metabolites, 11(4), 244. PMC free article
- Zeng, H. L., Zhang, B., Wang, X., Yang, Q., & Cheng, L. (2021). Urinary trace elements in association with disease severity and outcome in patients with COVID-19. Environmental research, 194, 110670. PMC free article
- Hackler J, Heller RA, Sun Q, Schwarzer M, Diegmann J, Bachmann M, Moghaddam A, Schomburg L. Relation of Serum Copper Status to Survival in COVID-19. Nutrients. 2021 May 31;13(6):1898. free article
Cuprous niacin 