Iron
A metallic element with atomic symbol Fe, atomic number 26, and atomic weight 55.85. It is an essential constituent of HEMOGLOBINS; CYTOCHROMES; and IRON-BINDING PROTEINS. It plays a role in cellular redox reactions and in the transport of OXYGEN.
Heme
The color-furnishing portion of hemoglobin. It is found free in tissues and as the prosthetic group in many hemeproteins.
Intestinal Absorption
Uptake of substances through the lining of the INTESTINES.
Absorption
Iron, Dietary
Iron or iron compounds used in foods or as food. Dietary iron is important in oxygen transport and the synthesis of the iron-porphyrin proteins hemoglobin, myoglobin, cytochromes, and cytochrome oxidase. Insufficient amounts of dietary iron can lead to iron-deficiency anemia.
Iron Isotopes
Stable iron atoms that have the same atomic number as the element iron, but differ in atomic weight. Fe-54, 57, and 58 are stable iron isotopes.
Iron Radioisotopes
Unstable isotopes of iron that decay or disintegrate emitting radiation. Fe atoms with atomic weights 52, 53, 55, and 59-61 are radioactive iron isotopes.
Iron Chelating Agents
Organic chemicals that form two or more coordination links with an iron ion. Once coordination has occurred, the complex formed is called a chelate. The iron-binding porphyrin group of hemoglobin is an example of a metal chelate found in biological systems.
Ferritins
Iron-containing proteins that are widely distributed in animals, plants, and microorganisms. Their major function is to store IRON in a nontoxic bioavailable form. Each ferritin molecule consists of ferric iron in a hollow protein shell (APOFERRITINS) made of 24 subunits of various sequences depending on the species and tissue types.
Iron Overload
An excessive accumulation of iron in the body due to a greater than normal absorption of iron from the gastrointestinal tract or from parenteral injection. This may arise from idiopathic hemochromatosis, excessive iron intake, chronic alcoholism, certain types of refractory anemia, or transfusional hemosiderosis. (From Churchill's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 1989)
Ferrous Compounds
Inorganic or organic compounds that contain divalent iron.
Phytic Acid
Biological Availability
Hepcidins
Forms of hepcidin, a cationic amphipathic peptide synthesized in the liver as a prepropeptide which is first processed into prohepcidin and then into the biologically active hepcidin forms, including in human the 20-, 22-, and 25-amino acid residue peptide forms. Hepcidin acts as a homeostatic regulators of iron metabolism and also possesses antimicrobial activity.
Ferric Compounds
Inorganic or organic compounds containing trivalent iron.
Anemia, Iron-Deficiency
Anemia characterized by decreased or absent iron stores, low serum iron concentration, low transferrin saturation, and low hemoglobin concentration or hematocrit value. The erythrocytes are hypochromic and microcytic and the iron binding capacity is increased.
Hemoglobins
Hemochromatosis
A disorder of iron metabolism characterized by a triad of HEMOSIDEROSIS; LIVER CIRRHOSIS; and DIABETES MELLITUS. It is caused by massive iron deposits in parenchymal cells that may develop after a prolonged increase of iron absorption. (Jablonski's Dictionary of Syndromes & Eponymic Diseases, 2d ed)
Heme Oxygenase (Decyclizing)
A mixed function oxidase enzyme which during hemoglobin catabolism catalyzes the degradation of heme to ferrous iron, carbon monoxide and biliverdin in the presence of molecular oxygen and reduced NADPH. The enzyme is induced by metals, particularly cobalt. EC 1.14.99.3.
Iron Compounds
Organic and inorganic compounds that contain iron as an integral part of the molecule.
Anemia, Hypochromic
Anemia characterized by a decrease in the ratio of the weight of hemoglobin to the volume of the erythrocyte, i.e., the mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration is less than normal. The individual cells contain less hemoglobin than they could have under optimal conditions. Hypochromic anemia may be caused by iron deficiency from a low iron intake, diminished iron absorption, or excessive iron loss. It can also be caused by infections or other diseases, therapeutic drugs, lead poisoning, and other conditions. (Stedman, 25th ed; from Miale, Laboratory Medicine: Hematology, 6th ed, p393)
Duodenum
Transferrin
An iron-binding beta1-globulin that is synthesized in the LIVER and secreted into the blood. It plays a central role in the transport of IRON throughout the circulation. A variety of transferrin isoforms exist in humans, including some that are considered markers for specific disease states.
Heme Oxygenase-1
A ubiquitous stress-responsive enzyme that catalyzes the oxidative cleavage of HEME to yield IRON; CARBON MONOXIDE; and BILIVERDIN.
Hemeproteins
Proteins that contain an iron-porphyrin, or heme, prosthetic group resembling that of hemoglobin. (From Lehninger, Principles of Biochemistry, 1982, p480)
Food, Fortified
Any food that has been supplemented with essential nutrients either in quantities that are greater than those present normally, or which are not present in the food normally. Fortified food includes also food to which various nutrients have been added to compensate for those removed by refinement or processing. (From Segen, Dictionary of Modern Medicine, 1992)
Iron-Binding Proteins
Proteins that specifically bind to IRON.
Cation Transport Proteins
Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides
Small cationic peptides that are an important component, in most species, of early innate and induced defenses against invading microbes. In animals they are found on mucosal surfaces, within phagocytic granules, and on the surface of the body. They are also found in insects and plants. Among others, this group includes the DEFENSINS, protegrins, tachyplesins, and thionins. They displace DIVALENT CATIONS from phosphate groups of MEMBRANE LIPIDS leading to disruption of the membrane.
Ascorbic Acid
A six carbon compound related to glucose. It is found naturally in citrus fruits and many vegetables. Ascorbic acid is an essential nutrient in human diets, and necessary to maintain connective tissue and bone. Its biologically active form, vitamin C, functions as a reducing agent and coenzyme in several metabolic pathways. Vitamin C is considered an antioxidant.
Spectrophotometry
Hemosiderin
Enterocytes
Absorptive cells in the lining of the INTESTINAL MUCOSA. They are differentiated EPITHELIAL CELLS with apical MICROVILLI facing the intestinal lumen. Enterocytes are more abundant in the SMALL INTESTINE than in the LARGE INTESTINE. Their microvilli greatly increase the luminal surface area of the cell by 14- to 40 fold.
Grape Seed Extract
Exudate from seeds of the grape plant Vitis vinifera, composed of oils and secondary plant metabolites (BIOFLAVONOIDS and polyphenols) credited with important medicinal properties.
Myoglobin
A conjugated protein which is the oxygen-transporting pigment of muscle. It is made up of one globin polypeptide chain and one heme group.
Receptors, Transferrin
Membrane glycoproteins found in high concentrations on iron-utilizing cells. They specifically bind iron-bearing transferrin, are endocytosed with its ligand and then returned to the cell surface where transferrin without its iron is released.
Iron Metabolism Disorders
Disorders in the processing of iron in the body: its absorption, transport, storage, and utilization. (From Mosby's Medical, Nursing, & Allied Health Dictionary, 4th ed)
Iron Regulatory Protein 1
A multifunctional iron-sulfur protein that is both an iron regulatory protein and cytoplasmic form of aconitate hydratase. It binds to iron regulatory elements found on mRNAs involved in iron metabolism and regulates their translation. Its RNA binding ability and its aconitate hydrolase activity are dependent upon availability of IRON.
Meat
Caco-2 Cells
Human colonic ADENOCARCINOMA cells that are able to express differentiation features characteristic of mature intestinal cells, such as ENTEROCYTES. These cells are valuable in vitro tools for studies related to intestinal cell function and differentiation.
Spectrum Analysis
Zinc
A metallic element of atomic number 30 and atomic weight 65.38. It is a necessary trace element in the diet, forming an essential part of many enzymes, and playing an important role in protein synthesis and in cell division. Zinc deficiency is associated with ANEMIA, short stature, HYPOGONADISM, impaired WOUND HEALING, and geophagia. It is known by the symbol Zn.
Oxidation-Reduction
A chemical reaction in which an electron is transferred from one molecule to another. The electron-donating molecule is the reducing agent or reductant; the electron-accepting molecule is the oxidizing agent or oxidant. Reducing and oxidizing agents function as conjugate reductant-oxidant pairs or redox pairs (Lehninger, Principles of Biochemistry, 1982, p471).
Carbon Monoxide
Carbon monoxide (CO). A poisonous colorless, odorless, tasteless gas. It combines with hemoglobin to form carboxyhemoglobin, which has no oxygen carrying capacity. The resultant oxygen deprivation causes headache, dizziness, decreased pulse and respiratory rates, unconsciousness, and death. (From Merck Index, 11th ed)
Deferoxamine
Natural product isolated from Streptomyces pilosus. It forms iron complexes and is used as a chelating agent, particularly in the mesylate form.
Bread
Baked food product made of flour or meal that is moistened, kneaded, and sometimes fermented. A major food since prehistoric times, it has been made in various forms using a variety of ingredients and methods.
Iron Regulatory Protein 2
Spectrum Analysis, Raman
Spectrophotometry, Atomic
Spectrophotometric techniques by which the absorption or emmision spectra of radiation from atoms are produced and analyzed.
Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy
A technique applicable to the wide variety of substances which exhibit paramagnetism because of the magnetic moments of unpaired electrons. The spectra are useful for detection and identification, for determination of electron structure, for study of interactions between molecules, and for measurement of nuclear spins and moments. (From McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, 7th edition) Electron nuclear double resonance (ENDOR) spectroscopy is a variant of the technique which can give enhanced resolution. Electron spin resonance analysis can now be used in vivo, including imaging applications such as MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING.
Intestines
Phlebotomy
The techniques used to draw blood from a vein for diagnostic purposes or for treatment of certain blood disorders such as erythrocytosis, hemochromatosis, polycythemia vera, and porphyria cutanea tarda.
Iron-Regulatory Proteins
Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
Bloodletting
Puncture of a vein to draw blood for therapeutic purposes. Bloodletting therapy has been used in Talmudic and Indian medicine since the medieval time, and was still practiced widely in the 18th and 19th centuries. Its modern counterpart is PHLEBOTOMY.
Liver
X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy
Whales
Large marine mammals of the order CETACEA. In the past, they were commercially valued for whale oil, for their flesh as human food and in ANIMAL FEED and FERTILIZERS, and for baleen. Today, there is a moratorium on most commercial whaling, as all species are either listed as endangered or threatened.
Phenylhydrazines
Biological Transport
6-Phytase
Soybeans
Intestinal Mucosa
Lining of the INTESTINES, consisting of an inner EPITHELIUM, a middle LAMINA PROPRIA, and an outer MUSCULARIS MUCOSAE. In the SMALL INTESTINE, the mucosa is characterized by a series of folds and abundance of absorptive cells (ENTEROCYTES) with MICROVILLI.
Jejunum
Edetic Acid
Zinc Isotopes
Stable zinc atoms that have the same atomic number as the element zinc, but differ in atomic weight. Zn-66-68, and 70 are stable zinc isotopes.
Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet
Determination of the spectra of ultraviolet absorption by specific molecules in gases or liquids, for example Cl2, SO2, NO2, CS2, ozone, mercury vapor, and various unsaturated compounds. (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed)