Iron is the second most abundant metal in the Earth's crust. Despite being present in trace amounts, it is an essential trace element for the human body, although it can also be toxic due to oxidative stress generation by the Fenton reaction, causing organic biomolecule oxidation. This process is the basis of numerous pathologies, including cardiovascular diseases (CVD). The relationship betwee...

A teflon chemostat constructed for studies of microbial trace metal metabolism is described. The utility of this continuous culture system was demonstrated with Streptococcus mutans, in which iron and manganese stimulated growth in ranges of 0.18 to 0.45 and 18 to 54 microM, respectively. This device should facilitate studies of the effect of trace metals on a variety of physiological functions.

The serum concentration of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), calcium (Ca) and iron (Fe) in 30 schizophrenic patients and 30 normal healthy subjects were analyzed by flame atomic absorption spectroscopy. The concentrations of Cd, Pb and Ca in schizophrenic disorder patients was not increased significantly (P > 0.05) compared to that of the cohort controls. But the concentration of Fe in schizophrenic pat...

Thirty-six daily duplicate diet samples were collected from 12 healthy female Japanese vegans and sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, copper, manganese, iodine, selenium, chromium and molybdenum in the diets were measured to estimate mineral and trace element intake by Japanese vegans. Significantly higher intake of potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, copper, mang...

A simple, rapid, and sensitive method for the determination of iron in serum or plasma is described. The procedure is carried out at room temperature with 2 ml. of serum or plasma, or with 1 ml. if high values are expected; it can be applied to turbid or jaundiced samples, whether previously frozen or not. An ethanolic solution of 4: 7-diphenyl-1: 10-phenanthroline is used to produce a coloured...

To determine the impact of socioeconomic status on plasma trace element status and pregnancy outcomes, 349 pregnant women, aged 15-40 years (mean 27.04 +/- 2.75 years), recruited at < or = 25 weeks (mean 21.76 +/- 3.12 weeks) gestational age, were followed up till delivery during which maternal and foetal outcomes were recorded. Plasma copper, iron, and zinc were determined using atomic absorpt...