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Updated: Aug 15, 2026
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Bone Marrow-derived Macrophage Production
Published on: November 22, 2013
Iron mobilization from cultured rat bone marrow macrophages
R Rama1, J Sánchez, J N Octave
1International Institute of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Brussels, Belgium.
Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta
|January 18, 1988
Summary
Macrophages recycle iron from aged red blood cells primarily as ferritin. This iron can then be transferred to apotransferrin in the bloodstream, facilitating its return for new hemoglobin synthesis.
Area of Science:
- Cell biology
- Hematology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- The reticuloendothelial system clears aged erythrocytes.
- Iron from erythrocytes is crucial for hemoglobin synthesis in bone marrow.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate iron mobilization from macrophages after erythroblast phagocytosis.
- To understand the role of apotransferrin in iron release from macrophages.
Main Methods:
- Cultured bone marrow macrophages were incubated with 59Fe-labeled erythroblasts.
- Iron localization (ferritin, low-molecular-weight fraction) and mobilization were analyzed.
- Iron transfer from cell-free medium containing ferritin and apotransferrin was assessed.
Main Results:
- Macrophages stored ingested iron in ferritin and a low-molecular-weight fraction.
- Iron was mobilized from macrophages predominantly as ferritin.
- Apotransferrin enhanced iron mobilization from macrophages.
- Iron transfer from ferritin to apotransferrin occurred in a cell-free system, independent of temperature.
Conclusions:
- Macrophages mobilize iron from digested erythroblasts mainly in the form of ferritin.
- This ferritin-bound iron can be transferred to apotransferrin in the extracellular environment, likely plasma.
- This mechanism contributes to the systemic iron supply for erythropoiesis.
