Lipid peroxidation and plasma antioxidant micronutrients in Crohn disease

In Crohn disease (CD), the increased production of reactive oxygen species from activated neutrophils may reduce plasma concentrations of antioxidant vitamins and result in increased oxidative stress.

We compared lipid peroxidation, a measure of reactive-oxygen-species production, and plasma antioxidant vitamin concentrations between CD patients and healthy control subjects.

Thirty-seven nonsmoking CD patients (22 women and 15 men) were compared with an equal number of healthy control subjects who were matched by age, sex, and body mass index. In patients the mean CD activity index (CDAI) was 141.2 +/- 18.7 (range: 9.0-514), and 11 of 37 patients (30%) had a CDAI > or =150. Seventy-eight percent of patients were taking > or = 1 medication. Medication use by subjects included the following: 5-aminosalicylic acid (40% of subjects), antibiotics (22%), oral corticosteroids (30%), and immunosuppressants (19%).

Lipid peroxidation as measured by breath pentane output (CD patients, 7.47 +/- 0.98 pmol x kg(-1) x min(-1); control subjects, 4.97 +/- 0.48 pmol x kg(-1) x min(-1); P < or = 0.025), breath ethane output (CD patients, 11.24 +/- 1.17 pmol x kg(-1) x min(-1); control subjects, 5.46 +/- 0.71 pmol x kg(-1) x min(-1); P < or = 0.0005) and F2-isoprostane (CD patients, 78.6 +/- 8.0 ng/L; control subjects, 60.6 +/- 3.7 ng/L; P < or = 0.047) were significantly higher in CD patients than in control subjects. Plasma antioxidant vitamins (ascorbic acid, alpha- and beta-carotene, lycopene, and beta-cryptoxanthin) were all significantly lower in CD patients than in control subjects. There were no significant differences in macro- and micronutrient intakes between groups.

Patients with CD are oxidatively stressed, which was observed even though 70% of patients had a CDAI < or =150 and 78% of them were taking medications to treat CD.