Define Transport and uptake of Zinc by Cells?
After absorption, zinc is bound to albumin and transported to the liver. In liver, it is concentrated and then transported to different tissues by various plasma proteins. Albumin transports 60% of the zinc, while remaining is transported by other compounds like 01-2 macroglobulin, transferrin, immunoglobulin and two amino acids-histidine and cysteine. Zinc is taken up by various tissues and is incorporated in different enzymes. Since zinc is an important component of various metallo-enzymes within the cells, enzyme synthesis and zinc uptake are correlated, However, mechanism of zinc uptake by various tissues is unknown. Multiple passive transport system including amino acid carrier systems have been proposed.