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Query: UMLS:C0240066 (iron deficiency)
 7,156 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Intestinal iron absorption is a critical process for maintaining body iron levels within the optimal physiological range. Iron in the diet is found in a wide variety of forms, but the absorption of non-heme iron is best understood. Most of this iron is moved across the enterocyte brush border membrane by the iron transporter divalent metal-ion transporter 1, a process enhanced by the prior reduction of the iron by duodenal cytochrome B and possibly other reductases. Enterocyte iron is exported to the blood via ferroportin 1 on the basolateral membrane. This transporter acts in partnership with the ferroxidase hephaestin that oxidizes exported ferrous iron to facilitate its binding to plasma transferrin. Iron absorption is controlled by a complex network of systemic and local influences. The liver-derived peptide hepcidin binds to ferroportin, leading to its internalization and a reduction in absorption. Hepcidin expression in turn responds to body iron demands and the BMP-SMAD signaling pathway plays a key role in this process. The levels of iron and oxygen in the enterocyte also exert important influences on iron absorption. Disturbances in the regulation of iron absorption are responsible for both iron loading and iron deficiency disorders in humans.
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PMID:Intestinal iron absorption. 2257 41

The causes and consequences of geophagy, the craving and consumption of earth, remain enigmatic, despite its recognition as a behavior with public health implications. Iron deficiency has been proposed as both a cause and consequence of geophagy, but methodological limitations have precluded a decisive investigation into this relationship. Here we present a novel in vivo model for assessing the impact of geophagic earth on iron status: Gallus gallus (broiler chicken). For four weeks, animals were gavaged daily with varying dosages of geophagic material or pure clay mineral. Differences in haemoglobin (Hb) across treatment groups were assessed weekly and differences in liver ferritin, liver iron, and gene expression of the iron transporters divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1), duodenal cytochrome B (DcytB) and ferroportin were assessed at the end of the study. Minimal impact on iron status indicators was observed in all non-control groups, suggesting dosing of geophagic materials may need refining in future studies. However, this model shows clear advantages over prior methods used both in vitro and in humans, and represents an important step in explaining the public health impact of geophagy on iron status.
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PMID:A Novel in Vivo Model for Assessing the Impact of Geophagic Earth on Iron Status. 2730 66