The formation of DNA-strand breaks was studied in cultured human lung cells (A 549) subjected to iron, either in the form of iron(III) citrate or in combination with the metal chelators ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA), nitrilo triacetic acid (NTA), or 8-hydroxyquinoline (8HQ). After 15 min exposure to 5 microM iron(III) citrate or iron chelate, the cellular levels of iron were found t...

Kinetics of radioactive iron transport from three structurally different secondary hydroxamate-iron chelates (schizokinen-iron, produced by Bacillus megaterium ATCC 19213; Desferal-iron, produced by an actinomycete; and aerobactin-iron, produced by Aerobacter aerogenes 62-1) revealed that B. megaterium SK11 (a mutant which cannot synthesize schizokinen) has a specific transport system for utili...

Astrocytes are considered key regulators of the iron metabolism of the brain. These cells are able to rapidly accumulate iron ions and various iron-containing compounds, store iron efficiently in ferritin and also export iron. The present short review summarizes our current knowledge of the molecular mechanisms involved in the handling of iron by astrocytes. Cultured astrocytes efficiently take...

Iron storage in yeast requires the activity of the vacuolar iron transporter Ccc1. Yeast with an intact CCC1 are resistant to iron toxicity, but deletion of CCC1 renders yeast susceptible to iron toxicity. We used genetic and biochemical analysis to identify suppressors of high iron toxicity in Δccc1 cells to probe the mechanism of high iron toxicity. All genes identified as suppressors of high...

We investigated the relation between maternal anaemia and neonatal iron status in 97 mothers and their babies. Haemoglobin (Hb), serum iron, total iron binding capacity and serum ferritin were determined. Mothers were divided into 3 groups: iron-deficient anaemic (22.7%), non-anaemic iron-deficient (27.8%) and non-anaemic non-iron-deficient (49.5%). There was no significant difference in the me...

BACKGROUND Plasma non-transferrin bound iron refers to heterogeneous plasma iron species, not bound to transferrin, which appear in conditions of iron overload and ineffective erythropoiesis. The clinical utility of non-transferrin bound iron in predicting complications from iron overload, or response to chelation therapy remains unproven. We undertook carefully timed measurements of non-transf...

Regular packed cell transfusion in patients with thalassemia major leads to iron overload. Chelation therapy is one of the important aspects of thalassemia care as iron overload causes significant cardiac, hepatic, and endocrine dysfunction. We report a case of thalassemia major with severe iron overload causing cardiac and liver dysfunction who benefitted from triple drug chelation therapy. Tr...

Iron is an essential but potentially hazardous biometal. Mammalian cells require sufficient amounts of iron to satisfy metabolic needs or to accomplish specialized functions. Iron is delivered to tissues by circulating transferrin, a transporter that captures iron released into the plasma mainly from intestinal enterocytes or reticuloendothelial macrophages. The binding of iron-laden transferri...

The iron-regulatory hormone hepcidin is a 25-amino acid peptide that is synthesized in hepatocytes. Hepcidin binds to the cellular iron export channel ferroportin and causes its internalization and degradation and thereby decreases iron efflux from iron exporting tissues into plasma. By this mechanism, hepcidin inhibits dietary iron absorption, the efflux of recycled iron from splenic and hepat...

Given its potential toxicity and low bioavailability, iron metabolism in humans is a tightly regulated process. Two main levels of regulation have been described: a cellular regulation that, through the binding of iron-responsive proteins (IRPs) to iron-responsive elements in mRNA from genes encoding proteins of iron metabolism, controls the synthesis of transferrin receptor (necessary for cell...