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Iron is both necessary to the body and potentially toxic. Controlling iron levels in the body is a critically important part of many aspects of human health and disease. Hematologists have been especially interested in systemic iron metabolism, because iron is essential for red blood cells, where most of the human body's iron is contained.
Iron is also stored as a pigment called hemosiderin, which is an ill-defined deposit of protein and iron, created by macrophages where excess iron is present, either locally or systemically, e.g., among people with iron overload due to frequent blood cell destruction and the necessary transfusions their condition calls for. If systemic iron ...
Hepcidin is a protein that in humans is encoded by the HAMP gene. Hepcidin is a key regulator of the entry of iron into the circulation in mammals. [6]During conditions in which the hepcidin level is abnormally high, such as inflammation, serum iron falls due to iron trapping within macrophages and liver cells and decreased gut iron absorption.
The most common type is iron-deficiency anemia, in which a lack of iron leads to a reduction in the number of red blood cells or hemoglobin. This can impair oxygen transport throughout the body.
Many of the first metalloproteins consisted of iron-sulphur complexes formed during photosynthesis. [13] Iron is the main redox metal in biological systems. In proteins, it is found in a variety of sites and cofactors, including, for instance, haem groups, Fe–O–Fe sites, and iron–sulfur clusters.
The most significant factor regulating iron uptake is the amount of iron present in the body. Iron absorption increases with sufficient iron storage and vice versa. Increased erythrocyte synthesis also stimulates iron absorption in the gut. [15] Therefore, oral bioavailability of iron varies greatly, ranging from less than 1% to greater than 50 ...
Iron-binding proteins are carrier proteins and metalloproteins that are important in iron metabolism [1] and the immune response. [2] [3] Iron is required for life.Iron-dependent enzymes catalyze a variety of biochemical reactions and can be divided into three broad classes depending on the structure of their active site: non-heme mono-iron, non-heme diiron , or heme centers. [4]
Iron deficiency, or sideropenia, is the state in which a body lacks enough iron to supply its needs. Iron is present in all cells in the human body and has several vital functions, such as carrying oxygen to the tissues from the lungs as a key component of the hemoglobin protein, acting as a transport medium for electrons within the cells in the form of cytochromes, and facilitating oxygen ...