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Iron
•
Most common nutritional deficiency
worldwide - estimated that 2 billion
people may be deficient
•
Excess iron also major problem as free
iron is toxic and causes oxidative
damage
Too much Iron
:
a. free radical mediated
damage
b. susceptibility to
infection
c. risk of heart disease,
especially in men
Too little Iron
:
reduced oxygen-
carrying capacity
and energy
generation
- especially in
women, children
Free Radical
:
an unstable atom
with an unpaired
electron in its outer
shell.
Many factors can cause free radical
formation: e.g. oxidation reactions,
immune system, pollution, radiation,
toxic substances
Functions of Iron
1.
Oxygen transport
–
Hemoglobin
–
Myoglobin
2.
Enzyme Cofactor
–
More than 200 enzyme reactions
– Ferrous (Fe
2+
) and Ferric (Fe
3+
) forms
3.
I
mmune Function
–
Generates free radicals
Major Iron-containing Proteins
1. Hemoglobin
: carries oxygen and carbon
dioxide in blood
2. Myoglobin
: carries oxygen to muscles
3. Cytochromes
: energy generation
4. Ferritin
: storage for iron, excess
becomes hemosiderin
5. Transferrin
: transports iron in blood
Heme
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Iron deficiency
•
Iron-deficiency anemia
– Iron deficiency results in small red blood
cells (microcytic) that do not contain
enough hemoglobin

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- Fall '08
- Amy
- Hemoglobin, vitamin B12 deficiency
-
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