Elemental Imbalance and Oxidative Biomarker Shifts in Lumbar Disc Degeneration

Damian Strojny^1*Roman Wojdyła²Klaudia Skóra¹Martyna Hoczela³Katarzyna Wyczarska-Dziki⁴Mateusz Rajchel⁵Mateusz Miller⁶Dawid Sobański¹Rafał Staszkiewicz¹Jerzy Wieczorek⁷Artur Chwalba⁸Przemysław Rogoziński⁹Beniamin Oskar Grabarek^1,10

• ¹Akademia WSB, Dabrowa Gornicza, Poland
• ²New Medical Techniques Specjalist Hospital of St. Family in Rudna Mała, rzeszow, Poland
• ³Uniwersity of Information Technology and Managment in Rzeszoq, rzeszow, Poland
• ⁴Uniwersity of Information Technology and Managment in Rzeszow, rzeszów, Poland
• ⁵New Medical Techniques Specjalist Hospital of St. Family in Rudna Mała, rzeszów, Poland
• ⁶Independent Public Healthcare Institution of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration in Rzeszów, rzeszów, Poland
• ⁷Uniwersytet Rolniczy im Hugona Kollataja w Krakowie, Kraków, Poland
• ⁸Slaski Uniwersytet Medyczny w Katowicach, Katowice, Poland
• ⁹Resdent Stomatology Rogozinscy, rzeszow, Poland
• ¹⁰Academy of silesia, Katowice, Poland

The pathogenesis of intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) involves complex biochemical disturbances, but the roles of trace elements and oxidative stress remain incompletely understood. This study measured selected micro- and macronutrients, as well as oxidative stress biomarkers, in degenerated and non-degenerated lumbar intervertebral discs (IVDs). Tissue samples were collected from 200 patients undergoing microdiscectomy for lumbosacral (L/S) IVDD and from 100 postmortem controls. Concentrations of zinc (Zn), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), sodium (Na), and potassium (K) were measured using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). Oxidative stress was assessed by thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARs; nmol MDA/mg protein), reduced glutathione (GSH; µmol/g tissue), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx; U/mg protein). Degenerated discs contained significantly higher concentrations of Zn (35.10 ± 22.00 vs. 22.30 ± 14.00 mg/kg, p = 0.027), Mg (62,000 ± 80,000 vs. 130 ± 90 mg/kg, p < 0.0001), Ca (6,100 ± 13,900 vs. 1,500 ± 730 mg/kg, p < 0.0001), and P (5,000 ± 5,500 vs. 1,600 ± 1,340 mg/kg, p < 0.0001) compared with controls. Zn concentrations peaked in Pfirrmann grade 4 discs, while magnesium was highest in grades 2 and 5 (p < 0.001). Ca and P were unrelated to degeneration grade (p > 0.05) but were significantly elevated in obese patients (p < 0.001). Mg was greatest in patients with normal body mass index (BMI) and declined progressively with increasing BMI (p < 0.001). Element concentrations were not significantly correlated with pain intensity (p > 0.05). TBARs were elevated in degenerated discs (5.52 ± 2.52 vs. 2.63 ± 0.97, p < 0.0001), GPx activity was higher (69.45 ± 3.92 vs. 60.25 ± 3.52, p = 0.027), and GSH was reduced, although not significantly (p = 0.054). Strong positive correlations were observed between P and Ca (r = 0.93, p < 0.001) and between K and Mn (r = 0.80, p < 0.001). This study demonstrates significant alterations in Zn, Mg, Ca, and P concentrations in degenerated IVDs, modulated by degeneration grade and metabolic status, together with evidence of oxidative stress.