Iron overload and unique susceptibility of liver transplant recipients to disseminated disease due to opportunistic pathogens
✍ Scribed by Nina Singh; Hsin-Yun Sun
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 2008
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 102 KB
- Volume
- 14
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 1527-6465
- DOI
- 10.1002/lt.21587
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
The propensity of liver transplant recipients to develop more fulminant disease presentation and a higher risk of disseminated disease due to a number of opportunistic infections, including invasive aspergillosis, cryptococcosis, zygomycosis, may be related to iron overload. Abnormalities in iron homeostasis may also be a contributor to severe manifestations due to other pathogens such as cytomegalovirus and Staphylococcus aureus in liver transplant recipients. Iron is essential not only for microbial pathogenesis, but directly impairs pivotal pathogen specific host defenses. Studies to assess iron homeostasis and the mechanisms by which iron overload contributes to the pathogenesis of opportunistic infections in liver transplant recipients are warranted.