SLC40A1 : solute carrier family 40 member 1
Description
The SLC40A1 (solute carrier family 40 member 1) is a protein-coding gene located on chromosome 2.
The SLC40A1 gene provides instructions for making a protein called ferroportin. This protein is involved in the process of absorbing iron that the body receives from food. Ferroportin transports iron obtained from the diet that is absorbed through the walls of the small intestine into the bloodstream. The iron is carried by the blood to the tissues and organs of the body. Ferroportin also transports iron out of specialized immune system cells (called reticuloendothelial cells) that are found in the liver, spleen, and bone marrow. The amount of iron absorbed during digestion depends on the amount of iron transported from intestinal and reticuloendothelial cells. The amount of ferroportin available to transport iron is controlled by another iron regulatory protein, hepcidin. Hepcidin attaches (binds) to ferroportin and causes it to be broken down when the body's iron supplies are normal. When the body is low on iron, hepcidin levels decrease and more ferroportin is available to transport iron into the bloodstream so it can be delivered to tissues throughout the body.
SLC40A1 transports ferrous iron (Fe2+) from the inside of a cell to the outside, which is crucial for maintaining the body's overall iron balance. This protein helps move iron from intestinal cells, spleen cells, liver cells, macrophages, and red blood cells into the bloodstream, supplying iron to other tissues. Consequently, SLC40A1 controls dietary iron absorption, iron recycling by macrophages and erythrocytes, and the release of iron stores in liver cells. When iron levels are too high in the blood, the level of hepcidin (HAMP), a hormone that regulates iron, increases. This causes SLC40A1 to be broken down, limiting the amount of iron released into the bloodstream.
SLC40A1 is also known as FPN, FPN1, HFE4, IREG1, MST079, MSTP079, MTP1, SLC11A3.
