The study of iron mobilisation from transferrin using alpha-ketohydroxy heteroaromatic chelators.

A group of heteroaromatic chelators with an alpha-ketohydroxy binding site have been tested for their ability to mobilise iron from transferrin in vitro. When these chelators were mixed with iron-saturated transferrin at physiological pH, biphasic reactions were observed. The alpha-ketohydroxy heteroaromatic chelators were found to cause substantial iron removal compared to other known chelators. These findings suggest that these chelators may have an important role in the study of iron metabolism and a possible clinical use in the treatment of transfusional iron overload in thalassaemia, and other diseases of iron imbalance.