Iron homeostasis: Recently identified proteins provide insight into novel control mechanisms

Research output: Contribution to journalShort surveypeer-review

125 Scopus citations

Abstract

Iron is an essential nutrient required for a variety of biochemical processes. It is a vital component of the heme in hemoglobin, myoglobin, and cytochromes and is also an essential cofac-tor for non-heme enzymes such as ribonucleotide reductase, the limiting enzyme for DNA synthesis. When in excess, iron is toxic because it generates superoxide anions and hydroxyl radicals that react readily with biological molecules, including proteins, lipids, and DNA. As a result, humans possess elegant control mechanisms to maintain iron homeostasis by coordinately regulating iron absorption, iron recycling, and mobilization of stored iron. Disruption of these processes causes either iron-deficient anemia or iron overload disorders. In this minireview, we focus on the roles of recently identified proteins in the regulation of iron homeostasis.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)711-715
Number of pages5
JournalJournal of Biological Chemistry
Volume284
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 9 2009

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology

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