Study of the ergothioneine concentration in the blood of individuals with diabetes mellitus.

Ergothioneine concentrations in the blood of 113 patients with diabetes mellitus and 22 non-diabetic individuals were measured by high performance liquid chromatography. There is no statistically significant difference between the mean ergothioneine concentrations of the diabetic and non-diabetic populations but there are several significant differences within the diabetic population. Male diabetics have a higher ergothioneine concentration than female diabetics. Type II diabetics have a higher ergothioneine concentration than type I diabetics. Diabetics receiving a higher insulin dose have higher ergothioneine concentrations. There was no correlation of ergothioneine concentration with the concentration of haemoglobin A1 or with the number of years diabetic. It is suggested that zinc therapy may be beneficial for diabetics having a high concentration of blood ergothioneine.