Mc. Rodriguezmatas et al., INFLUENCE OF NUTRITIONAL IRON-DEFICIENCY DEVELOPMENT ON SOME ASPECTS OF IRON, COPPER AND ZINC-METABOLISM, Laboratory animals, 32(3), 1998, pp. 298-306
This paper examines the development of iron (Fe) deficiency and its po
ssible interactions with trace elements such as zinc (Zn) and copper (
Cu) by investigating iron-deficient and control rats. The effects of i
ron deficiency were studied at day 0, 10, 20, 30 and 40 in rats fed on
an iron-free diet (diet ID). It was found that the critical period in
the development of nutritional iron deficiency occurs after 30 to 40
days without iron supplementation. At this time the organism is unable
to maintain haemoglobin levels without endangering the iron-dependent
enzymatic groups which are essential for life. It was also demonstrat
ed that in a situation of iron deficiency, there occurs a greater abso
rption of copper, while that of zinc remains unchanged. As iron defici
ency progresses, the levels of copper in the spleen and the sternum in
crease. It is apparent that iron deficiency provokes more marked alter
ations in the metabolism of copper than of zinc.