Metals, Metalloproteins and Disease
Wesleyan Blog
The plague is caused by the bacteria Yersinia pestis. Infected rats carry the disease and pass it to fleas, the disease vector. The bacteria grow in the fleas’ abdomen and are passed to humans through a flea bite. There are three types of the plague; bubonic, septicemic and pneumonic. The bubonic plague has an early … Read more
Hard metal lung disease (HMLD) is a rare illness caused by chronic exposure to cobalt and tungsten carbide. HMLD is most commonly developed by people who work in industries that use heavy metal tools that are ground down, heated, or both, releasing heavy metal particles into the air which can be inhaled. Cobalt is a … Read more
Manganism is a disease that arises as a direct result of long term exposure to high levels of Manganese. It is characterized by deposition of Manganese in the brain, and results in mitochondrial dysfunction. The most common treatment is removal from the area with high Manganese exposure, but this doesn’t work for everyone. Luckily, it’s … Read more
Of the metals we have been learning about in this course, Iron (Fe) is one of the most important metals that we all utilize in our everyday biological functions and our bodies need to keep a good balance in order for our bodies to function correctly. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), iron deficiency … Read more
Neural tube defects (NTDs) are the second most common birth defect worldwide and can occur do to environmental factors like micronutrition. Deficiencies in folic acid concentrations have been heavily associated with human NTDs due to neurulation’s dependency on the methionine cycle and folate cycle. Neurulation is the formation of the nervous system from the ectoderm … Read more
Hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) is known as an iron overload disease because too much iron ends up being absorbed from the diet and is stored inappropriately in many organs. Since iron is a reactive metal, this can be dangerous and cause failure of these organs. There are multiple types of HH which are caused by different … Read more
Zinc ions (Zn2+) are ingested through diet and can be found in a variety of foods – including the water supply. Zinc is the second most common transition metal ion found in the body (below iron) and is used as a cofactor in hundreds of proteins – including DNA-binding zinc-finger domains and carbonic anhydrase (converts … Read more
Parkinson’s Disease is a brain disorder which is caused by decreased levels of dopamine and the resulting degeneration of the neurons in the substantia nigra of the brain. Physical effects of Parkinson’s Disease include shaking, stiffness, issues with balance and coordination, memory loss and even dementia. As early as 175 AD, Parkinson’s disease has been … Read more
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that accounts for approximately 80% of all dementia diagnoses. As we age, it is normal to notice a slight decrease in cognitive ability, for example, we may forget where we place our glasses or where we park our cars. However, dementia is different than benign senescent forgetfulness in … Read more
Huntington’s disease (HD) is caused by a dominant genetic mutation which means that if one parent develops the disease there is a 50/50 chance of their child also having the gene responsible for causing the disease. This mutation involves the protein huntingtin and is an insertion of multiple glutamine amino acids into the protein sequence … Read more
