He observed that zinc was required for the growth of aspergillus niger. The human body contains 23 gr of zinc and the recommended daily intake of zinc is about 12 mgday and may increase up to 19 mgday for pregnancy and lactation. Because of its role in immune function, zinc is likewise added to some nasal sprays, lozenges and other natural cold treatments. It is found in organs, tissues, bones, fluids, and cells. Apr 03, 2008 because zinc deficiency affects il2 production and tcell activation adversely, we have investigated the role of zinc on nf.
Minerals are chemical constituents used by the body in many ways. The rda for adult males is 11mgday and 8mgday for females. It plays a role in cell division, cell growth, wound healing, and. It is therefore considered as essential for tissue growth. Vitamin and mineral requirements in human nutrition. Essential trace elements and their vital roles in human body. The therapeutic roles of zinc in acute infantile diarrhea, acrodermatitis enteropathica, prevention of blindness in patients with agerelated macular degeneration, and treatment of common cold with zinc have been reported. Zinc is one of the most important trace elements in the organism. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a bluesilvery appearance when oxidation is removed. Zinc is widely distributed in both animal and vegetable foods. Other organs containing estimable concentrations of zinc include prostate, liver, the gastrointestinal tract, kidney, skin, lung, brain, heart, and pancreas 68.
Zinc homeostasis the human body contains 23 g zinc, and nearly 90% is found in muscle and bone 5. Skeletal muscle accounts for approximately 60 percent of the total body content and bone mass, with a zinc concentration of 1. It can be found in a range of foods, including seafood. It is found in every cell in the body and is also part of our dna and rna that are the building blocks of life and growth. In addition, zinc takes part in neurotransmitters, and plays a key role in immune function, sound growth and development. Similarly, zinc is an essential nutrient for human health. Clinical diagnosis of marginal zn deficiency in humans remains problematic. Zinc is essential for normal development and function of cellmediating innate immunity, neutrophils, and natural killer cells. In this article, the importance of zinc in human biology and physiology, its pharmacokinetics, causes and manifestations of its deficiency and excess, its therapeutic roles, side effects of zinc supplements and ways for its prevention and treatment have been described. Importance of magnesium in the human body all natural ideas. Jul 18, 2014 the adult body contains about two to three grams of zinc. An overview of zinc and its importance in dermatology. It is vital for more than 300 enzymes in the human body, activating growth height.
Facts about zinc ydietary zinc is absolutely essential for our body. Zinc supports the work of numerous proteins in the body among them are the metalloenzymes, which are. The last few years have witnessed the earnest recognition of the vital role of micronutrients in human health. You can also take zinc supplements or multinutrient supplements that provide zinc. Dec 05, 2017 zinc is a trace element that is essential for regulating the immune system. This element was discovered by german chemist andreas sigismund marggraf in 1746 at germany 4.
Eight ways zinc affects the human body sciencedaily. Zinc is an essential element in the nutrition of human beings, animals, and plants. The human body contains around 2 mg of copper per kilogram of body mass. Zinc also is an antioxidant and has antiinflammatory actions. In women, zinc is needed for the body to efficiently utilize the reproductive hormones estrogen and progesterone. In this case, essential means that zinc is one of the 24 micronutrients the human body needs to function properly. In 1961 importance of zinc for human body was recognized. It is primarily involved in the transfer of oxygen from the lungs to tissues. Because zinc is not well conserved in the body and because zinc deficiency is directly. As for zinc, its recognition as an essential mineral came only recently.
However, iron also plays a role in metabolism as a component of. The highest concentration of it occurs in the liver, pancreas, kidneys and brain. It is vital for more than 300 enzymes in the human body. The path and the role of zinc zn in organisms biological role of zn zinc is involved in numerous aspects of cellular metabolism 8. So far, blood plasmaserum zinc concentration, dietary intake, and stunting.
As weve already mentioned above, zinc is an essential mineral which plays a number of roles in the body. Oral uptake of zinc leads to absorption throughout the. Today we know that zinc plays many important roles. The clinical features of severe zinc deficiency in humans are growth retardation. In spite of the proven benefits of adequate zinc nutrition, approximately 2 billion.
Zinc absorption from the gastrointestinal tract is influenced by physiologic demand, zinc load, and the presence of dietary enhancers including human milk and animal proteins. Matrix metalloproteinases mmps are a family of proteolytic zinc containing enzymes involved in physiological as well as in pathological processes in the human organism. This article explains everything you need to know about zinc, its functions, benefits, the risk of deficiency and potential side effects. In fact, increasing zinc levels to a normal level increased the pregnancy rate in those studies.
In some respects, zinc is chemically similar to magnesium. It is vital for many biological functions in the human body. The last few years have witnessed the earnest recognition of the vital role of micronutrients in human. The last five years have seen a virtual explosion of interest and understanding of the spectrum of functions of zinc at subcellular levels. Foods with high protein content, specifically animal protein, are major sources. Nov 14, 2018 zinc is a nutrient that plays many vital roles in your body. Zinc is one of the most important trace elements in the organism, with three major biological roles, as catalyst, structural, and regulatory ion. It plays a key role in the synthesis and stabilization of genetic material. Elements of human nutrition phosphorus phosphorus is the second most abundant mineral in the body. It is the first element of group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is also vital to the synthesis of dna deoxyribonucleic acid and rna ribonucleic acid and is therefore important for cell division. The nutritional relationships of zinc trace element.
There are several methods you can approach, but the most important are lifestyle and eating habits. Copper and zinc, biological role and significance of copperzinc imbalance josko osredkar1 and natasa sustar2 1university medical centre ljubljana, zaloska cesta 2, ljubljana, slovenia 2general hospital izola, polje 40, 6310 izola, slovenia introduction the human body has an elaborate system for managing and. The recommended daily intake varies between 712mg of zinc. It is responsible for a number of functions in the human body, and it. Zinc is a trace element that is essential for regulating the immune system. B activation in hut78, a t helper 0 th 0 human malignant lymphoblastoid cell line. In men, zinc is needed to manufacture the outer layer and tail of the sperm. Pdf a potential medicinal importance of zinc in human health and. Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is one of the socalled trace elements present in the body, but in nature it is present in the earths crust to the extent of about 0. It was estimated that about 10% of human proteins potentially bind zinc, in addition to hundreds which transport and traffic zinc. Beside its role in crop production zn plays a part in the basic roles of cellular functions in all living organisms and is involved in improving the human immune system, due to its insufficient intake, human body will suffer from hair and memory loss, skin problems and weakness in body muscles. It is found in traces in all body tissues the content being 1.
Lonnerdal used a dose of zinc similar to that obtained from most meals and studied zinc absorption by using radiolabeled zinc and whole body counting. Zinc is necessary for the physiological growth, reproduction and normal functioning of the brain and. It is required for the catalytic activity of approximately 100 enzymes 1, 2 and it plays a role in immune function 3, 4, protein synthesis 4, wound healing 5, dna synthesis 2, 4, and cell division 4. Mmps play a key role in the remodeling of the extracellular matrix. Zinc is a trace element that is necessary for a healthy immune system.
Zinc participates in more than 200 enzymatic reactions in the body. Zinc is involved in numerous aspects of cellular metabolism. The role of zinc in health and disease jpma journal of pakistan. Zincbinding motifs are found in many proteins encoded by the human genome physiologically, and free zinc is mainly regulated at the singlecell level. Human adults were administered 25 mg of zinc as zinc sulfate znso4 in water solution, and iron was added at 25, 50 or 75 mg. Zinc zn zn is a chemical element with symbol zn and atomic number 30. For example, zinc is a part of the super oxide dismutase enzyme, so it also has a role as an antioxidant. Zinc is found in organs, tissues, bones, fluids, and cells. It is necessary for cell division and the synthesis and degradation of hydrocarbons, lipids and proteins. Relevance to child health in developing countries pages with reference to book, from 68 to 73 zulfiqar ahmed bhutta department of paediatrics, the aga khan university, karachi. Of the trace minerals, this element is second only to iron in its concentration in the body. Introduction zinc, a divalent cation, atomic no30 essential micronutrient role of zinc over 300 metalloenzymes and over 2000 transcription for regulation of lipid, protein and nucleic acid metabolism, and gene transcription. Minerals are inorganic substances, present in all body tissues and fluids and their presence is necessary for the corresponding author.
The role of matrix metalloproteinase in human body. Several zinc trials in infertile couples have improved deficient sperm count and sperm function. Zinc is required in the genetic makeup of every cell and is an absolute requirement for all. Chapter 5 zinc deficiency world health organization. Since there are no storing systems for zinc in the body, zinc has to be ingested daily and the homeostasis has to be regulated accurately.
Zinc absorbed from the intestine is carried to the liver bound to albumin zinc is present in the human body in the concentration of 0. Phosphorus, like calcium, also builds bones and teeth. It is also present in red blood cells and blood serum. It also has roles in pathogenesis of some dermatological disorders.
The clinical spectrum and public health significance of human zinc deficiency severe zinc deficiency. Iron performs many important functions in the body. Human zinc deficiency the journal of nutrition oxford. Iron is an essential element for most life on earth, including human beings by participating in a wide variety of metabolic processes, including oxygen transport, dna synthesis, and electron transport. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. In this paper, the role of zinc in cellmediated immunity and its role as an antioxidant and an antiin. The human body contains 23 g of zinc, mostly intracellular. It is now known that zinc is essential to over 100 enzymes in the body. Copper and zinc, biological role and significance of copper. The physiological, biochemical, and molecular roles of. Oxford university report on documented antiviral effects. A normal nonvegetarian diet furnishing sufficient protein will also have enough zinc. Many researchers were done to identify role of zinc in human body. Zinc is an important trace mineral that people need to stay healthy.
It is found in several systems and biological reactions, and it is needed for immune function, wound healing, blood clotting. Copper and zinc, biological role and significance of. Research has revealed that copper is vital for the optimal health of the human body, along with other mineral micronutrients such as iron, calcium and zinc. The story of how zinc achieved acceptance is a very interesting one.
In fact, zinc is really a miracle element in many ways. Zinc also supports normal growth and development during. The total body zinc content has been estimated to be 30 mmol 2 g. It is required for the catalytic activity of more than 200 enzymes 9,10 and. Zinc biochemistry unlike iron and copper, zinc is redox neutral and is reactive as a lewis acid in biological reactions. The total body zinc content of adult humans ranges from about 1. Because of these features, zinc playskeyrolesasastructural,catalytic,andsignalingcomponent. It is present in all parts of the body including organs, tissues, bones, fluids and cells. A potential medicinal importance of zinc in human health and chronic disease. Zinc and immunity zinc affects multiple aspects of the immune system 6,7,8. Zinc is a chemical element with the atomic number 30, represented by the chemical symbol zn linus pauling institute. Dec 17, 2015 importance of magnesium in the human body treating deficiencies if you are experiencing any of the symptoms above, you are probably wondering how to combat the symptoms. The importance of mineral elements for humans, domestic.
Not long ago scientists derided the premise that zinc played a role in human health. Jan 20, 2014 boosts fertility zinc is the most widelystudied nutrient regarding human fertility, and its fertilityboosting properties are perhaps its bestknown role. Body zinc content is regulated, by homeostatic mechanisms, over a wide range of intake by changes in fractional absorption normally 2040% and urinary 0. Zinc is the most abundant essential trace mineral found in the human body after iron 5. Benefits, intake, sources, deficiency, and side effects. Summary zinc is an essential mineral that your body does not make on its own. Role of zinc in antiviral immunity advances in nutrition. Such a process may occur because of tissue homeostasis, morphogenesis, and tissue repair. The history of our understanding of the role of zinc in human nutrition and disease provides an excellent example of the mutual benefits of closely linking nutrition research in industrialized nations with that in the developing world. Plasma zinc was reduced significantly with increasing dose of iron. It is needed for the body s defensive immune system to properly work. From a clinical standpoint, it is these symptoms and signs with which the physician should be familiar. The adult body contains about two to three grams of zinc. Benefits, deficiency, food sources and side effects.
A lack of zinc can make a person more susceptible to disease and illness. This esource explores coppers essentiality and uses in the human body. The physiology of of oxidative enzymes the essential nature of copper in the human body results from its incorporation in many basic oxidative enzymes. Find out about the benefits of zinc and how it helps the body. Zinc zn is an essential nutrient for all forms of life and its importance lies in the fact that many body functions are linked to zinc containing enzymes1. The tight regulation of zinc homeostasis both systemically and intracellularly indicates that zinc plays an essential role in human health. Zinc is needed for the proper growth and maintenance of the human body. Only a small amount occurs in the plasma and is predominantly bound to albumin. Uses, side effects, interactions, dosage, and warning.