iron Flashcards
What is the Fenton reaction?
Ferrous iron plus hydrogen peroxide produces damaging, highly reactive hydroxyl radicals plus ferric iron
What are the two storage forms of iron?
Ferritin and haemosiderin
Main site of absorption of iron
Duodenum and proximal jejunum
Main storage site of surplus iron
Hepatocytes
Most iron in the body is found in…
Erythrocytes and macrophages
Main role of hepcidin
Regulator of iron absorption and macrophage iron release
Where is hepcidin synthesized?
Hepatocytes
In what forms does hepcidin circulate?
Free, and bound to alpha-2 macroglobulin
What is ferroportin?
The main exporter of iron from within cells to the blood stream
How does hepcidin regulate iron release/absorption?
By binding to ferroportin, which causes its internalisation and degradation
Where is ferroportin found?
On the basolateral surface of jejunal enterocytes and on macrophages
What is the role of hephaestin and ceruloplasmin in iron metabolism?
They are multicopper oxidases that catalyse the oxidation of Fe 2+ to Fe 3+ for loading onto transferrin. Hephaestin does this from enterocytes and ceruloplasmin does this from macrophages and hepatocytes.
The erythroid progenitor cells uptakes which form of iron:
a) hepcidin bound
b) ferroportin bound
c) transferrin bound
d) hephaestin bound
c) transferrin bound
Where does heme synthesis occur?
In the mitochondria of the erythroid progenitor cell
How many subtypes of hereditary haemochromatosis are there?
6