Copper, health considerations

While many of these copper oxidases are essential to life as we know it on this planet, and some, like tyrosinase, are essential to our own health, their mechanism of action has remained relatively obscure, certainly in relation to our knowledge of some of the proteolytic enzymes. This paper has attempted to outline the considerable progress that has been made over the past several years in understanding these difficult enzymes. Much of the new information has been developed because of the presence of copper as a reporter group at the active site. 

EXPLOSION and FIRE CONCERNS flammable gas dangerous fire hazard NFPA rating Health 2, Flammability 4, Reactivity 2 may form explosive peroxides upon exposure to air autopolymerizes in the presence of sodium forms carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide upon combustion vapor may travel considerable distance to source of ignition and flash back explodes on contact with aluminum tetrahydroborate incompatible with strong oxidizers, halogens, oxygens, and copper alloys use water as fog or spray, dry chemical or carbon dioxide for firefighting purposes. 

The role of Cu as an essential trace element has focused attention on possible roles for copper chelation of biologically active ligands, with subsequent interference of normal transport and distribution, as well as the role of the metal in redox reactions due to the accessible oxidation states of (I) and (II). Similarly, the physiological response of copper levels in disease conditions [50] and the overall role of trace metals in health and disease [51, 52] are relevant and of considerable importance. The increase in serum copper content in infections, arthritic diseases, and certain neoplasms is well documented and, in fact, the subsequent decrease in level upon treatment has been used successfully as an indicator of cancer remission [50]. Copper complexes may be effective in therapy due in part to their ability to mimic this physiological response of elevated copper [53] and, clearly, the interplay of introduced copper with pre-existent bound copper and effects on copper—protein mediated processes will affect the ultimate biological fate of the complex. Likewise, while the excess accumulation of free Cu, and indeed Fe and Zn, caused by malfunction or absence of normal metabolic pathways is extremely damaging to the body, the controlled release of such metals may be beneficially cytotoxic. The widespread pharmacological effects of copper complexes have been briefly reviewed [54]. 

MINERAL AND VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS. There is considerable controversy among nutritionists and pediatricians regarding the amounts and types of nutrient supplements that are required by infants, since breast-fed infants have long been given little or no supplementation. Furthermore, the need for supplementation depends upon a variety of factors such as (1) status of the infant at birth, since preterm or low birth weight infants have higher nutritional requirements to attain the rates of growth and development of normal infants (2) type of milk or formula used (3) affliction of the infant with diarrhea, fever, infection, and/or other stresses and (4) age at which supplemental foods are introduced. It is noteworthy that even breast milk is low in iron, copper, fluoride, vitamins A, D, and E, and biotin, folacin, niacin, thiamin, and vitamin B-6. Furthermore, diluted evaporated milk is notably inferior to breast milk with respect to the contents of iron, zinc, vitamin A, vitamin E, and vitamin C. Therefore, the need for nutrient supplements should be evaluated by a health professional who is familiar with the diet and the overall health status of the infant. 

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