Journal Information
Journal ID (publisher-id): BM
Journal ID (nlm-ta): Biochem Med (Zagreb)
Title: Biochemia Medica
Abbreviated Title: Biochem. Med. (Zagreb)
ISSN (print): 1330-0962
ISSN (electronic): 1846-7482
Publisher: Croatian Society of Medical Biochemistry and Laboratory Medicine
Article Information
Copyright statement: ©Croatian Society of Medical Biochemistry and Laboratory Medicine.
Copyright: 2022, Croatian Society of Medical Biochemistry
License (open-access):
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Date received: 15 July 2022
Date accepted: 05 September 2022
Publication date (electronic): 15 December 2022
Publication date (print): 15 February 2023
Volume: 33
Issue: 1
Electronic Location Identifier: 010801
Publisher ID: bm-33-1-010801
DOI: 10.11613/BM.2023.010801
Reversible atransferrinemia in a patient with chronic enteropathy: is transferrin mandatory for iron transport?
Alexandre Raynor[1]
Carmen Stefanescu[2]
Arnaud Bruneel[1]
[1] Department of Biochemistry, Bichat University Hospital, APHP.Nord, Paris, France
[2] Department of Gastroenterology, Beaujon University Hospital, APHP. Nord, Clichy, France
[3] French Porphyria Center, Louis Mourier University Hospital, Colombes, France
[4] Department of Biochemistry, Beaujon University Hospital, APHP. Nord, Clichy, France
[5] Université Paris Cité, INSERM U1149, HIROS Heme Iron and Oxidative Stress, Inflammation Research Center, Paris, France
Author notes:
[*] Corresponding author: hana.manceau@aphp.fr
Herein, we report the case of a 42-year-old woman, hospitalized in a French tertiary hospital for a relapse of a chronic enteropathy, who was found on admission to have no detectable serum transferrin. Surprisingly, she only exhibited mild anaemia. This atransferrinemia persisted for two months throughout her hospitalization, during which her haemoglobin concentration remained broadly stable. Based on her clinical history and evolution, we concluded to an acquired atransferrinemia secondary to chronic undernutrition, inflammation and liver failure. We discuss the investigations performed in this patient, and hypotheses regarding the relative stability of her haemoglobin concentration despite the absence of detectable transferrin.
Keywords: transferrin; iron; inflammation; enteritis
