Two different zinc oxide nanoparticles, as well as zinc ions, are used to study the cellular responses of the RAW 264 macrophage cell line. A proteomic screen is used to provide a wide view of the molecular effects of zinc, and the most prominent results are cross-validated by targeted studies. Furthermore, the alteration of important macrophage functions (e.g. phagocytosis) by zinc is also inv...

The ability of rat liver zinc-thionein to donate its metal to the apo-enzymes of the zinc enzymes horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase, yeast aldolase, thermolysin, Escherichia coli alkaline phosphatase and bovine erythrocyte carbonic anhydrase was investigated. Zinc-thionein was as good as, or better than, ZnSO(4), Zn(CH(3)CO(2))(2) or Zn(NO(3))(2) in donating its zinc to these apo-enzymes. Apo-(...

The ZRT1 gene encodes the transporter responsible for high affinity zinc uptake in yeast. ZRT1 is transcribed in zinc-limited cells and its transcription is repressed in zinc-replete cells. In this report, we describe a second, post-translational mechanism that regulates ZRT1 activity. In zinc-limited cells, ZRT1 is a stable, N-glycosylated plasma membrane protein. Exposure to high levels of ex...

Zinc is an essential micronutrient. It plays a role in stabilizing transcription factors in order to maintain normal cellular function. When the concentration of zinc is not regulated within cells, pathological conditions such as cancers, gastrointestinal tract and skin disorders develop. Although dysregulation of cellular zinc results in several pathological conditions, the mechanism of zinc t...

The glandular epithelial cells of the human prostate gland have the unique capability and function of accumulating the highest zinc levels of any soft tissue in the body. Zinc accumulation in the prostate is regulated by prolactin and testosterone; however, little information is available concerning the mechanisms associated with zinc accumulation and its regulation in prostate epithelial cells...

Extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy was combined with thermodynamic and kinetic approaches to investigate zinc binding to a zinc finger (C2H2) and a tetrathiolate (C4) peptide. Both peptides represent structural zinc sites of proteins and rapidly bind a single zinc ion with picomolar dissociation constants. In competition with EDTA the transfer of peptide-bound zinc io...

Food shortage in Sub-Saharan Africa is predominantly taken as a function of limited access to food, with out considering nutritional quality. Analyzing households’ production of nutrients on farm across farming systems could be valuable in guiding intensification of those systems. An optimization model was employed to analyze the scenario of human nutrition and cropland allocation in Enset (Ens...

When we think about trace elements and bacterial virulence, iron is usually the first metal that comes up. Zinc, although often forgotten, is the second most abundant trace element, after iron, in humans. Plasma concentrations of zinc range between 12 and 16 μM, and practically all zinc is bound to albumin or other proteins [1]. Zinc is found at low levels on mucosal surfaces; in sputum and bro...

The zinc transporter (ZnT; SLC30) and Zrt- and Irt-like protein (Zip, SLC39) zinc transporter families are integral to the maintenance of intracellular zinc concentrations. Few studies have examined the expression patterns of zinc transporter genes in human primary tissues. This study investigated the expression levels of a range of zinc transporter mRNA in the peripheral blood mononuclear cell...