Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 1, 2026

The Caco-2 Cell Bioassay for Measurement of Food Iron Bioavailability
Published on: April 28, 2022
Interactions between ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and iron absorption pathways, in the Caco-2 model
I B Kibangou1, F Bureau, S Allouche
1Laboratoire de Physiologie Digestive et Nutritionnelle, CHU de Caen, 14033, Caen, France.
Unlabelled:
EDTA is a well known enhancer of iron absorption; however, the precise way of absorption of iron ingested in presence of EDTA is not known; some data suggest it could use a passive, non regulated paracellular way. Iron (sulphate or gluconate) absorption by Caco-2 cells was assessed in presence of EDTA. EDTA did not change the apical uptake of iron; transport in the basal chamber increased by 98% for FeSO4 and 95% for Fe gluconate. By contrast, intracellular storage decreased by 31% for FeSO4 and 64% for Fe gluconate. In addition EDTA induced a significant increase of permeability of the cell monolayer assessed by a decrease of transepithelial electrical resistance: 314+/-34 Omegacm(-2) to 235+/-57 Omegacm(-2) for sulphate, 414+/-33 Omegacm(-2) to 223+/-36 Omegacm(-2) for gluconate; iron free control: 410+/-10 Omegacm(-2).
Conclusions:
These results suggest that in presence of EDTA iron absorption occurs mainly by the paracellular instead of the regulated cellular way, that could potentially enhance its toxicity.
Related Concept Videos
EDTA: Auxiliary Complexing Reagents
EDTA: Chemistry and Properties
Complexometric EDTA Titration Curves
EDTA: Conditional Formation Constant
For the equilibrium reaction of the metal with the Y4− form of EDTA, the formation...
Masking and Demasking Agents
There are many masking agents, such as cyanide, fluoride, triethanolamine, thiourea, and 2,3-bis(sulfanyl)propan-1-ol (formerly 2,3-dimercapto-1-propanol), with the masking agent chosen based on the metal...
Complexation Equilibria: The Chelate Effect
