New developments and controversies in iron metabolism and iron chelation therapy

Figure 1 The chemical structure of the iron chelating drugs. L1 (A), DF (B) and DFRA (C) are currently used for the treatment of thalassaemia and other transfusional iron loading conditions. DTPA (D) and EDTA (E) have been previously used for the treatment of iron overload but are now used for the detoxification of toxic metals and in particular EDTA in alternative medicine. The maltol (F) iron complex is used for increasing iron absorption and 8-hydroxyquinoline (G) is a lipophilic chelator used for radiolabeling in diagnostic medicine and for experimental purposes. L1: Deferiprone; DF: Deferoxamine; DFRA: Deferasirox; DTPA: Diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid; EDTA: Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid.