How helpful is optimum zinc in diet ??

Part I:-The untold story of a micronutrient??  Role of Zn in the etiogenesis of   diabetes !!!! 

Glucagon secretion & role of  Zinc :--Zn controls a multitude of processes within the pancreas including glucagon secretion digestive enzyme activity and insulin packaging secretion and signaling .Zinc import modulates glucagon secretion through Zet and Irt like protein transporters expressed in pancreatic a cells

How it causes hyperglycaemia?  A) What happens at pancreatic level due to deficiency of Zn in a human?? Zinc acts on the cell membrane of pancreatic B cells. Thereby Zn  is involved in systemic glycemic control through zinc transporters on the cell membrane of pancreatic B cells thus regulating insulin biosynthesis within these cells.

B) Zinc cause à crystallization of the hormone. This is caused at pancreas as zinc binds to insulin causing the crystallization of the hormone. But if deficiency of Zn à  its impaired crystallization of native insulin at pancreatic islets cells . This impaired crystallization  can lead to both type 1 and type 2 diabetes .Pancreatic exocrine function is influenced by zinc in zymegen granules which regulates digestive enzyme activity and nutrient absorption .

C) The other role played by Zn at Pancreas:-Suboptimal zinc status decreases insulin secretion from the pancreas and severe zinc deficiency induces hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia  and  hyperinsulinemia. Additionally , :-deficiency of Zn at level of pancreas( dear member please keep in mind that  Zn is an antioxidant& we frequently prescribe Zn incases male subfertility  . A contd supply intracellular oxidants is essential for synthesis of insulin. But in absence of adequate Zn à more free radicals associated with decrease in the antioxidant capabilities of zinc encourage the complications of diabetes.

To conclude:-Pancreatic dysregulation of zinc metabolism can impair glycemic control cause pancreatic cancer and chronic pancreatitis. `

Part II : Zn & Cardiovascular system

Zinc protects the vasculature through its anti inflammatory and antioxidant effects and affects hemostasis which has implications for atherosclerosis and thrombosis. A zinc deficiency can cause bleeding and clotting abnormalities and has also been associated with congestive heart failure  myocardial infarction arrhythmias and diabetic cardiomyopathy through its involvement in diabetes pathology

Immune system

The development of immune cells and gene expression that controls cellular functions cell signaling and cytokine secretion are all modulated by zinc which thus plays a role in both the adaptive and the innate immune response.

Innate immunity

Zinc deficiency  disrupts innate immunity by reducing the lytic  activity of natural killer cells impairs NKT cell cytotoxicity  and immune signaling impacts the neuroendocrine immune pathway  and alters cytokine production in mast cells.

Adaptive Immunity

The adaptive immune response is controlled by B cells which mediate humoral immunity and T cells  which  mediate cytotoxic effects. B cells depend on zinc for proliferation zinc is essential for T cell differentiation and it maintains Th1/Th2 balance  Suboptimal  zinc  levels lead to high levels of apoptosis in pre B and T cells

Control of zinc homeostasis must be  intact for proper immune functioning and a zinc deficiency increase bacterial invasion by promoting an inflammatory response thus damaging the mucosa in the gastrointestinal and respiratory tracts.

Iron metabolism and zinc

A majority  of iron is associated with hemoglobin which controls a number of enzymatic processes and is involved in the genesis of reactive oxygen  species . the involvement of other related metals particularly divalent cations like zinc in iron metabolism  are increasingly being recognized  . Zinc protects the cell from free radical  damage maintaining an adequate  levels of metallothioneins and it prevents the interaction between chemical groups with Iron to form free radicals

Zinc interacts with  iron  metabolism

Zinc can modulate Hepcidin transferrin ferroportin  and ceruloplasmin which can influence iron transport and mobilization . Its  interaction with divalent metal protein 1 can further regulate gene expression

Zinc stimulates erythropoisies

Zinc was found to stimulate  erythropois  is resulting in red blood cell proliferation and stimulation of immature RBCs which has potential benefits in anemia.

Zinc influences red blood cell membrane stability and integrity

A study to evaluate the expression of zinc transporters in RBCs in healthy individuals who were administered a zinc depletion diet found that , in addition to zinc transporters zinc depletion also influenced dematin a protein which maintains membrane structure  of erythrocytes. The amount of erythrocyte dematin in the plasma membrane was shown to be highly sensitive to the host’s zinc intake

Zinc can modulate iron metabolism by interaction with a number of proteins including Hepcidin It stimulates erythropoisies and also maintains the structural integrity of erythrocytes as recently evidenced by the zinc responsiveness of membrane dematin thus effecting the erythroid system.