For years, experts have known that a hormone called hepcidin regulates the amount of iron circulating in the bloodstream, but the way in which it interacts with cells has remained a mystery.Now, that mystery has been solved.The finding could lead to new treatments for anemia and hemochromatosis, two blood-iron disorders that affect millions of Americans. “We know who the players are now,” explained lead researcher Dr. Tomas Ganz, a professor of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Medicine. He said the new research “outlines how all the pieces fit together."A report on the cellular process appears in the Oct. 28 online issue of Science.
