Intestinal iron absorption: regulation by dietary & systemic factors.

摘要

Iron is an essential trace metal in human metabolism. However, imbalances in ironhomeostasis are prevalent worldwide and have detrimental effects on human health.Humans do not have the ability to remove excess iron and therefore ironhomeostasis is maintained by regulating the amount of iron entering the body fromthe diet. Iron is present in the human diet in number of different forms,including heme (from meat) and a variety of non-heme iron compounds. While hemeis absorbed intact, the bioavailability of non-heme iron varies greatly dependingon dietary composition. A number of dietary components are capable of interactingwith iron to regulate its solubility and oxidation state. Interestingly, there isan emerging body of evidence suggesting that some nutrients also have directeffects on the expression and function of enterocyte iron transporters. Inaddition to dietary factors, body iron status is a major determinant of ironabsorption. The roles of these important dietary and systemic factors inregulating iron absorption will be discussed in this review.