Evaluation of iron-chelating agents in cultured heart muscle cells. Identification of a potential drug for chelation therapy.

Primary cultures of neonatal rat cardiac muscle cells incorporated radioiron from both [55Fe]transferrin and 59FeCl3 (added simultaneously). To evaluate the effect of iron chelators on such uptake, deferri chelators were added 6 hr after addition of the radioiron sources. The microbial chelator agrobactin was significantly more effective than the drug defoxamine in reduction of 55Fe uptake from [55Fe]transferrin; both chelators halted 59Fe3+ uptake. Agrobactin may have potential in chelation therpay for iron-overload disease. Certain other microbial chelators lowered radioiron uptake from either [55Fe]transferrin of 59FeCl3. These chelators should be useful inhibitors for studies of animal cell iron uptake and intracellular iron flow.