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The role of iron in the immune response to bacterial infection

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Abstract

My laboratory has been interested for some time in the influence of iron, a nutrient that is essential for both microbial pathogens and their mammalian hosts, on the course of infectious disease. Our studies indicate that alterations in the expression of host molecules that sequester or transport iron can have direct effects on pathogen growth and can also have an impact on the ability to mount normal immune responses. We have elucidated the mechanistic basis for some of these observations, and have started to apply our findings in strategies to control abnormalities of inflammation and iron metabolism. I will review here what we have learned about the interactions between iron and immunity and discuss the implications of the information that we have acquired.

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Acknowledgments

Work in the author’s laboratory is supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R56AI089700), the Broad Medical Research Program (IBD-0253) and the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America (1754).

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  1. Mucosal Immunology Laboratory, MassGeneral Hospital for Children, MGH East, Building 114, 16th Street, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA

    Bobby J. Cherayil

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    Bobby J. Cherayil

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Cherayil, B.J. The role of iron in the immune response to bacterial infection. Immunol Res 50, 1–9 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12026-010-8199-1

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