Iron dysregulation and anemias

Abstract

Most iron in the body is utilized as a component of hemoglobin that delivers oxygen to the entire body. Under normal conditions, the iron balance is tightly regulated. However, iron dysregulation does occasionally occur; total iron content reductions cause iron deficiency anemia and overexpression of the iron regulatory peptide hepcidin disturbs iron utilization resulting in anemia of chronic disease. Conversely, the presence of anemia may ultimately lead to iron overload; for example, thalassemia, a common hereditary anemia worldwide, often requires transfusion, but long-term transfusions cause iron accumulation that leads to organ damage and other poor outcomes. On the other hand, there is a possibility that iron overload itself can cause anemia; iron chelation therapy for the post-transfusion iron overload observed in myelodysplastic syndrome or aplastic anemia improves dependency on transfusions in some cases. These observations reflect the extremely close relationship between anemias and iron metabolism.