The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Vol. 82, No. 1 209-212
Copyright © 1997 by The Endocrine Society
Increased Catabolism of 25-Hydroxyvitamin D in Patients with Partial Gastrectomy and Elevated 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D Levels. Implications for Metabolic Bone Disease1
Michael Davies,
Sara E. Heys,
Peter L. Selby,
Jacqueline L. Berry and
E. Barbara Mawer
Bone Disease Research Centre, University Department of Medicine,
Manchester Royal Infirmary, Manchester, M13 9WL, United Kingdom
Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Dr. M. Davies, University Department of Medicine, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Manchester, M13 9WL, United Kingdom.
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Abstract
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Serum vitamin D metabolites and PTH were measured in seven subjects
with a history of previous partial gastrectomy (PGX) and metabolic bone
disease. The elimination t1/2 of
[3H]25-hydroxyvitamin D3
([3H]25OHD3) in serum was assessed after an
iv pulse dose of 5 µCi [26,27-3H]25OHD3.
Median serum 25OHD3 was 37.5 (27.5101.3) nmol/L, [normal
range (NR) 10.858.5 nmol/L], mean serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,
25-(OH)2D3] was raised at 175 ± 72
pmol/L, (NR 48120 pmol/L) and mean PTH was also high, 67 ± 27
ng/L, (NR 1060 ng/L). Serum t1/2
[3H]25OHD3 ranged from 10.921.2 days. A
strong negative correlation existed between t1/2
[3H]25OHD3 and serum
1,25-(OH)2D3 [Spearmans rank correlation
coefficient (r = -0.82, P = 0.002)] and PTH
[Spearmans rank correlation coefficient (r = -0.81,
P = 0.001)]. Four subjects who had high initial
PTH concentrations (60115 ng/L) and elevated 1,25-(OH)2D
levels (162300 pmol/L) were reassessed after calcium supplementation
to suppress secondary hyperparathyroidism (2°HPT). In this subgroup,
after-treatment PTH fell from 82 ± 24 to 52 ± 24 ng/L
(mean ± SD), not significant; 1,25-(OH)2D
fell from 210 ± 61 to 116 ± 28 pmol/L,
P = 0.015; and t1/2
[3H]25OHD3 increased from 13.2 ± 1.9 to
18.9 ± 3.1 days, P = 0.012.
Patients with PGX and evidence of 2°HPT with elevated
1,25-(OH)2D have a reduced t1/2
[3H]25OHD3, and this may explain the
increased susceptibility of the subjects to osteomalacia. Calcium
supplementation suppresses 2°HPT, increases t1/2
[3H]25OHD3 and may protect against PGX
osteoporosis and osteomalacia.
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Introduction
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VITAMIN D deficiency, osteomalacia, and
osteoporosis are recognized complications in patients who have had
previous partial gastrectomy (PGX) (1, 2, 3). Some patients have an
associated postgastrectomy malabsorption syndrome with steatorrhea, but
in others, intestinal absorption seems normal. We previously have
documented normal intestinal absorption of vitamin D in five subjects
with PGX (4), and vitamin D deficiency is reversed by physiological
doses of vitamin D. It is therefore unclear why subjects with PGX
should suffer from vitamin D deficiency, especially when the diet in
the United Kingdom is not the major source of vitamin D. In the United
Kingdom, the main source of vitamin D for an individual is cutaneous
synthesis, and the principal cause of vitamin D deficiency is sunlight
deprivation. A diet lacking in calcium produces secondary
hyperparathyroidism (2°HPT) and elevated serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin
D (1, 25-(OH)2D) (the active metabolite of vitamin D); in
the rat this is associated with enhanced metabolic clearance of the
precursor 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) (5). We have shown a similar
mechanism in humans, and in a variety of clinical situations, the
elimination t1/2 of a tracer dose of tritium-labeled
25OHD ([3H]25OHD3) is inversely related to
the prevailing serum concentration of 1,25-(OH)2D (6, 7).
Furthermore, an artificially induced abrupt increase in serum
1,25-(OH)2D is followed quickly by a reduction of
t1/2 [3H]25OHD3 (7).
Increased serum 1,25-(OH)2D and low serum 25OHD have been
reported in subjects after gastrectomy (8, 9), suggesting that problems
with calcium absorption may lead to 2°HPT in a way similar to the
situation induced experimentally in the rat by Clements et
al. (5).
We have studied a group of subjects with a history of PGX to examine
the effect on the t1/2
[3H]25OHD3. In a subset with 2°HPT, we have
repeated the investigation after suppression of the 2°HPT with large
oral doses of calcium (12 g/day).
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Subjects and Methods
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Subjects and protocol
Seven patients were studied (five female, two male) aged 5373
yr. Clinical details are given in Table 1
. The protocol
was approved by the local ethical committee, and each patient gave
informed consent. After an overnight fast, a rapid iv injection of 5
µCi (185 KBq) [26,27-3H]25OHD3 (762
GBq/mmol) Amersham International plc (Amersham Bucks, UK) in 5 mL of
the patients own fasting plasma was given into one arm at 0900
h. Blood samples were taken immediately and at regular intervals for 14
days. The decline of [3H]25OHD3 in the
patients plasma was followed by direct liquid scintillation counting
of 400-µL samples with 4-mL Optiphase Safe Wallac (LKB) in an LKB
1217 Rackbeta scintillation spectrometer (LKB, South Croydon, UK). The
decline of 3H in the plasma after an iv injection of
[3H]25OHD3 is described by a biphasic
exponential curve (10). Virtually all the plasma 3H is
present as 25OHD3; even after 14 days,
[3H]25OHD3 forms 97% of the plasma
radioactivity (7).
Computation of t1/2
[3H]25OHD3
A [log plasma] concentration/time curve for the decay of
plasma 3H was constructed for each subject, and the
gradient of the slope from the fourth day after injection was
determined by least-squares regression analysis. The long-phase
t1/2 for [3H]25OHD3 in
plasma was calculated using the formula: t1/2 =
log2/gradient (7).
Assays
Serum vitamin D metabolites were extracted for assay as
previously described (11). Metabolites were separated by automated
high-performance liquid chromatography (Waters Associates). 25OHD was
quantified by competitive protein-binding assay (12) using normal human
serum as the source of vitamin D-binding protein at a dilution of
1:20,000. The reference range was 10.858.5 nmol/L (inter- and
intraassay coefficients of variation 8.8% and 7.8%, respectively).
1,25-(OH)2D was measured by RIA using monoclonal antibody
5F2 (13) with a reference range of 48120 pmol/L (inter- and
intraassay coefficients of variation 10.7% and 7.8%,
respectively).
Serum PTH was measured by immunoradiometric assay using a Nichols
Institute Allegro Kit for intact PTH (Saffron Walden, UK, reference
range 1060 ng/L). Serum calcium, phosphate, albumin, creatinine, and
alkaline phosphatase were analyzed on a multichannel autoanalyzer
(American Monitor Corporation, Indianapolis, IN). Serum calcium was
corrected for changes in serum albumin concentration according to the
formula: corrected Ca = actual Ca + (40 - serum albumin) x 0.02
mmol/L (14).
Statistics
Statistical analysis was undertaken using Minitab (Minitab Inc.,
State College, PA). The distributions of all variables, apart from
alkaline phosphatase and 25OHD, did not deviate from normality.
Association between the variables was sought using Spearmans rank
correlation coefficient (rs) followed by stepwise linear
regression to control for multiple interactions. The differences
between group means were examined using Students two-tailed paired
t tests; values are expressed as mean ±
SD.
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Results
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Plasma biochemistry and values for the calculated
t1/2 25OHD3 are detailed in Table 2
. All patients except patient 4 had normal serum
calcium, phosphate, and alkaline phosphatase and no biochemical
evidence of osteomalacia. Patient 4 had an antecedent history of
osteomalacia, and his biochemistry was consistent with the healing
phase of that disease. All subjects were initially vitamin D-replete
with serum 25OHD above 25 nmol/L, median 37.5 (27.5101.3) nmol/L.
Mean serum 1,25-(OH)2D was raised in the group, 175 ±
72 pmol/L, with elevated levels in five of the seven subjects. Mean
serum PTH also was raised at 66.6 ± 27.2 ng/L with high levels in
four patients, who also had raised 1,25-(OH)2D
concentrations.
Patients 2, 4, 6, and 7 (Table 2
), who had high PTH and raised
1,25-(OH)2D levels, were restudied after attempts to
suppress 2°HPT with oral calcium supplements; none became
hypercalcemic with this treatment. In three of these patients, serum
PTH fell to within the reference range; PTH remained elevated in
patient 4, and the change in the group (from 82 ± 24 to 52
± 24 ng/L) was not significant, P = 0.104.
1,25-(OH)2D levels became normal, the mean falling from
210 ± 61 to 116 ± 28 pmol/L, P = 0.015.
Initial t1/2 25OHD3 ranged from
21.210.9 days (Table 2
). After calcium supplementation, which lowered
serum 1,25-(OH)2D, mean t1/2
25OHD3 increased by 35%, from 13.2 ± 1.9 to
18.9 ± 3.1 days, P = 0.016. A highly significant
inverse relationship was demonstrated (Fig. 1
) between
t1/2 25OHD3 and the prevailing serum
1,25-(OH)2D (rs = -0.82, P =
0.002). A similar relationship also existed between
t1/2 25OHD3 and serum PTH
(rs = -0.81, P = 0.001). There was no
association between t1/2 25OHD3 and
serum calcium (rs = 0.31, P = 0.35),
phosphate (rs = 0.08, P = 0.83), or 25OHD
(rs = -0.07, P = 0.84). Because there is
an association between the serum concentration of
1,25-(OH)2D and PTH (rs = 0.61,
P = 0.05), stepwise multiple linear regression was used
to determine whether the effects of 1,25-(OH)2D and PTH on
t1/2 25OHD3 were independent. Both
1,25-(OH)2D and PTH remained as independent predictors
within the regression equation, with t values of -5.32
(P < 0.001) and -3.53 (P = 0.008),
respectively.
When the present results are combined with those of our previously
reported studies (6, 7), the strong relationship between
t1/2 25OHD3 and 1,25-(OH)2D
persists (Fig. 2
, rs = -0.64,
P = 0.0001). These aggregated results include data from
patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (1°HPT) before and after
surgery (6), and patients with disorders of bone and mineral metabolism
before and after treatment with calcium or 1,25-(OH)2D
(7).
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Discussion
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The present study in PGX patients reaffirms the relationship
between the prevailing serum concentration of 1,25-(OH)2D
and the t1/2 for 25OHD3 in plasma. We
have shown previously that the variation in observed
t1/2 25OHD3 without change in vitamin D
or parathyroid status is less than 2% when two consecutive
measurements are made in individuals without change in vitamin D or
parathyroid status (7). The present changes in t1/2
varied from 2352% in the four patients in whom calcium supplements
were given to suppress the high serum 1,25-(OH)2D values
and are therefore significant and not explicable in terms of
methodological error. In a previous study (7) of patients undergoing
parathyroidectomy for 1°HPT, a reduced t1/2
25OHD3 was accompanied by increased fecal excretion of
tritium as a result of enhanced metabolic inactivation of
25OHD3. Meyer et al. (15) have documented
increased fecal loss of cholecalciferol after iv administration of
radioactive cholecalciferol to gastrectomized rats; however, no data
were available regarding serum 1,25-(OH)2D levels. Nilas
et al. (8) found raised 1,25-(OH)2D levels in a
group of patients with PGX in whom calcium absorption was low-normal,
and PTH (using a C terminal assay) was not raised. Rao et
al. (16) found evidence of 2°HPT in a subset of women with a
past history of PGX. These collected observations suggest that after
PGX, the intestinal absorption of calcium may be impaired and is only
compensated for by the induction of 2°HPT and consequent increase in
serum 1,25-(OH)2D.
The mechanisms whereby 1,25-(OH)2D enhances the catabolism
of 25OHD are not fully understood but may involve reactions in both
liver and kidney. 1,25-(OH)2D is known to suppress renal
1
-hydroxylase activity, thus down-regulating its own synthesis, and
to stimulate 24-hydroxylase activity. Halloran et al. (17)
have shown that 1,25-(OH)2D infusions increase the
clearance of 24,25-(OH)2D and, in a study of men with
Billroth II gastrectomy (18), 24,25-(OH)2D concentrations
were lowered whereas 1,25-(OH)2D levels were increased,
supporting Hallorans data (18).
There is no evidence for hepatic 24-hydroxylation of
25OHD3, and in experiments investigating the effects of
rearing rats on a low calcium diet to induce 2°HPT or sc infusing
1,25-(OH)2D3, Bolt et al. (19) could
detect no metabolism of [3H]25OHD3 in hepatic
homogenates and concluded that, in these circumstances, the increased
metabolic clearance of [3H]25OHD3 was caused
by urinary loss of catabolic products. However, increased biliary
excretion of 3H also was observed, and the authors
postulated that catabolic intermediates in the side-chain oxidation
pathway for [3H]25OHD3 would enter the
bloodstream and be eliminated via the liver. Clements et al.
(5) also observed increased biliary excretion in rats of label from
[3H]25OHD3 in response to
1,25-(OH)2D3 treatment and concluded that the
time scale of the response favored a direct role for the liver. The
reason for the failure of Bolt and co-workers (19) to observe hepatic
metabolism of [3H]25OHD3 in homogenates may
be that an intact biliary system is needed to drain the polar
metabolites and stimulate secretion. We have clear evidence of rapid
biliary excretion of polar metabolites of
[3H]25OHD3 in isolated perfused pig livers
(20). One way in which [3H]25OHD3 may be
eliminated from the circulation is by biliary excretion of water
soluble conjugates such as glucuronides. There is evidence to support
this and other possible hepatic catabolic pathways (20, 21). Fox
et al. (22) found a 48% increase in hepatic microsomal
uridine diphosphate glucuronyl transferase activity in rats fed a low
calcium diet (which elevated 1,25-(OH)2D3). The
increased fecal 3H excretion we observed in our study of
[3H]25OHD3 catabolism in 1°HPT (6) would
support such an alternative pathway. The way in which low calcium and
increased 1,25-(OH)2D3, which are often
interrelated, may influence hepatic enzymes is not clear, but the liver
is now known to express vitamin D receptor message and protein (23, 24)
and thus can be regarded as a target organ for
1,25-(OH)2D3 activity.
In the present study, PTH seems to have an effect upon
t1/2 25OHD3 that was independent of the
effect of 1,25-(OH)2D. We have not observed this effect
previously and have found the relationship between
t1/2 25OHD3 and 1,25-(OH)2D
in the absence of PTH (7). The mechanism(s) whereby PTH itself may be
influencing the t1/2 25OHD3, other than
via enhanced synthesis of 1,25-(OH)2D, is not clear, and
our present observations may be similar to the experimental data
obtained by Bolt et al. (19) and described above. Regardless
of the mechanism responsible for the phenomenon we have observed, it is
clear that the increased clearance of 25OHD in the presence of high
1,25-(OH)2D in subjects with PGX helps to explain the
development of vitamin D deficiency when the supply of vitamin D is
limited. Ultimately, when the amount of 25OHD substrate decreases to a
critical point, synthesis of 1,25-(OH)2D will fall and
calcium absorption will decrease. If the supply of vitamin D is
adequate, the long-term effects of raised 1,25-(OH)2D and
PTH (2°HPT) may be to enhance bone turnover, exacerbate any
preexisting remodeling imbalance, and lead to osteopenia or
osteoporosis, all well-known complications of PGX (18).
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Footnotes
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1 This work was supported by Programme Grant 902-6370 from the Medical
Research Council, United Kingdom. 
Received May 20, 1996.
Revised August 16, 1996.
Accepted August 23, 1996.
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