During infection, the host sequesters essential nutrients, such as zinc, to combat invading microbes. Despite the ability of the immune effector protein calprotectin to bind zinc with subpicomolar affinity, Staphylococcus aureus is able to successfully compete with the host for zinc. However, the zinc importers expressed by S. aureus remain unknown. Our investigations have revealed that S. aure...

In many synapses of the CNS, mobile zinc is packaged into glutamatergic vesicles and co-released with glutamate during neurotransmission. Following synaptic release, the mobilized zinc modulates ligand- and voltage-gated channels and receptors, functioning as an inhibitory neuromodulator. However, the origin and role of tonic, as opposed to phasically released, zinc are less well understood. We...

BACKGROUND Zinc is an essential micronutrient for human health and has numerous structural and biochemical roles. The search for a reliable, sensitive, and specific index of zinc status has been the subject of considerable research, which has resulted in the identification of a number of potentially useful biomarkers. OBJECTIVE The objective was to assess the usefulness of biomarkers of zinc ...

The Zap1 transcriptional activator of Saccharomyces cerevisiae controls zinc homeostasis. Zap1 induces target gene expression in zinc-limited cells and is repressed by high zinc. One such target gene is ZAP1 itself. In this report, we examine how zinc regulates Zap1 function. First, we show that transcriptional autoregulation of Zap1 is a minor component of zinc responsiveness; most regulation ...

The effect of zinc deficiency on the function of the intestine to absorb water and electrolytes was studied in animal models, stimulated by Vibrio cholerae enterotoxin. Sprague-Dawley rats, used in the study, were divided into four groups: Zinc-deficient, ad libitum zinc-fed control, zinc weight-matched control, and zinc-deficient acutely-repleted. 14C-labelled polyethylene glycol solution was ...

Zinc delivery from a nipple shield delivery system (NSDS), a novel platform for administering medicines to infants during breastfeeding, was characterised using a breastfeeding simulation apparatus. In this study, human milk at flow rates and pressures physiologically representative of breastfeeding passed through the NSDS loaded with zinc-containing rapidly disintegrating tablets, resulting in...

BACKGROUND The existing therapeutic methods for neonatal jaundice are costly, time-consuming and potentially risky. Zinc salts can reduce phototherapy duration by precipitating unconjugated bilirubin in the intestine (bilirubin and zinc can form a complex in physiologic pH); however, zinc toxicity is an issue that must be considered since theoretically bilirubin reduction by phototherapy may in...

Zinc is an important co-factor for metabolism relevant to neurotransmitters, fatty acids, prostaglandins, and melatonin, and indirectly affects dopamine metabolism, believed intimately involved in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). To explore the relationship of zinc nutrition to essential fatty acid supplement and stimulant effects in treatment of ADHD, we re-analyzed data from a...

Y.V. Li and J.H. Zhang (eds.), Metal Ion in Stroke, Springer Series in Translational Stroke Research, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4419-9663-3_7, © Springer Science+Business Media New York 2012 Abstract Although zinc (Zn or Zn 2+ ) signals are necessary for cell communication and survival, abnormal cellular zinc load can be a precursor for cell death and subsequent brain degeneration following a stroke. Z...

Cells protect themselves from zinc toxicity by inducing proteins such as metallothionein (MT) that bind it tightly, by sequestering it in organelles, or by exporting it. In this study, the interplay between zinc binding by MT and its efflux by zinc transporter 1 (ZnT1) was examined genetically. Inactivation of the Znt1 gene in baby hamster kidney (BHK) cells that do not express their Mt genes r...