Anaemia in the Maltese Islands

Abstract

During its early development the earth's atmosphere was, in chemical terms, a reducing environment and produced an abundance of ferrous iron which therefore became the form used in early biological molecules. Later, increasing amounts of oxygen became available, iron converted to the ferric form and organisms had to evolve various mechanisms to utilize it. Bacteria synthesise high-affinity chelating agents to extract iron from their surroundings; plant roots exude a substance which facilitates iron absorption; while mammals have evolved a specific "shuttle" protein - transferrin - in the upper intestinal tract. These mechanisms work well for bacteria, plants and many mammals, but humans appear to have difficulty in maintaining an adequate iron balance. Besides iron, erythropoicsis requires an adequate regular·supply of other nutrients, notably folate and vitamin B 12. The relative deficiency of these minerals and nutrients results in various forms of anaemia.