Is ceruloplasmin the same as copper?

Ceruloplasmin is a protein made in your liver. It stores and carries the mineral copper around your body. Ceruloplasmin carries 65\% to 90\% of the copper found in blood. Copper is vital to many processes in your body.

What is ceruloplasmin test used for?

A ceruloplasmin test is most often used, along with copper testing, to help diagnose Wilson disease. Wilson disease is a rare genetic disorder that prevents the body from removing excess copper. It can cause a dangerous buildup of copper in the liver, brain, and other organs.

Is there a blood test for copper levels?

Typically, a total blood copper test is ordered along with a ceruloplasmin level. If the results from these tests are abnormal or unclear, then they may be followed by a 24-hour urine copper test to measure copper elimination and/or a copper test performed on a liver biopsy to evaluate copper storage in the liver.

How do you test for copper levels?

You might also be checked for possible copper deficiency, copper toxicity, or Wilson disease with these tests:

1. Blood ceruloplasmin.
2. 24-hour urine test for copper.
3. Hepatic copper, or measuring copper in a liver biopsy.
4. Vitamin B-12 level.

Is copper a component of ceruloplasmin?

Ceruloplasmin is a copper-containing globulin that has a molecular weight of 151,000; the molecule consists of eight subunits, each containing one copper ion. Ceruloplasmin is the principal carrier of copper in organisms, although copper can also be transported by the iron-containing globulin transferrin.

Is ceruloplasmin low in copper deficiency?

Free, unbound copper concentrations in the blood tend to increase when ceruloplasmin levels are low. Deficiencies in copper can cause low levels of blood ceruloplasmin because the protein is degraded more quickly when it is not bound to copper [19].

What is ceruloplasmin level test?

The ceruloplasmin test measures the level of the copper-containing protein ceruloplasmin in the blood. Blood is drawn from a vein (venipuncture), usually from the inside of the elbow or the back of the hand. A needle is inserted into the vein, and the blood is collected in an air-tight vial or a syringe.

What does high copper and ceruloplasmin mean?

Neoplastic diseases are ones that cause abnormal tissue growth. If your ceruloplasmin levels are high, it could also indicate that you have: copper toxicity. rheumatoid arthritis (RA) a serious infection.

What is copper serum test?

A copper plasma test, also known as a copper serum test, is most often used to test for or rule out the presence of Wilson’s disease. The condition disrupts the body’s process for eliminating copper from the body; and so as copper continues to be consumed, copper levels in the blood continue to rise.

Is ceruloplasmin a transport protein for copper?

An equally important duty is that ceruloplasmin, after its rapid biosynthesis in the liver, serves as a major copper transport vehicle, comparable to transferrin. Thus ceruloplasmin is a copper-protein with several important functions, all of which are directly related to its oxidase activity.

What does low serum copper mean?

Background: Low serum copper is often indicative of copper deficiency. Acquired copper deficiency can cause hematological/neurological manifestations. Wilson disease (copper toxicity) is associated with neurological manifestations and low serum copper, with copper deposited in tissues responsible for the toxicity.