Getting to the "Heart" of Cardiac Disease by Decreasing Mitochondrial Iron.

Iron is an essential trace mineral for normal mammalian physiology. It is incorporated into iron/sulfur (Fe/S) clusters that serve as important cofactors for many enzymes, including the mitochondrial respiratory chain, and it gives blood and muscle their signature red color through its presence in heme. Because of its involvement in many important cellular processes, dysregulation of iron often causes disease. There are 2 broad categories of diseases associated with iron dysregulation—iron overload and iron deficiency. Each category can be further subdivided based on whether the changes in iron occur at the cellular or at the systemic level.