Features of iron exchange in patients with lung tuberculosis (review of literature)

Iron is an essential trace element not only for the human body, but also for some microorganisms, including mycobacterium tuberculosis. Being strict aerobes, mycobacteria receive iron from the human body using the siderophore transporter system. Iron deficiency is the most common micronutrient deficiency. A healthy person contains an average of 3-5 grams of iron, which plays a key role in many metabolic processes. At the cellular level, iron is necessary for the functioning of enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of nucleic acids, the depletion of the intracellular iron pool leads to cell apoptosis. More than 20 proteins involved in the metabolism of iron and the maintenance of its homeostasis have been described. The most important are transferrin and its receptors, ferritin, ferroportin and other transporter proteins, ferroxidases. According to the literature, patients with tuberculosis are characterized by the development of anemia of chronic diseases and an increase in the level of hepcidin, as well as ferritin and lactoferrin in the blood serum. The problem of the effect of mycobacteria on the indicators of iron metabolism in the human body remains insufficiently studied and relevant, since the identification of the processes of iron production and assimilation by mycobacteria that remain unknown will open up the possibility of influencing these processes in order to develop new methods for treating tuberculosis patients.

tuberculosis, mycobacterium, iron, ferritin, hepcidin