“...zinc transporter detection might be an aid in cancer detection/control.”

The zinc transporter field is a very active area of research. Our paper was inclusive of all transporters known when it was published. Our emphasis is on physiologic regulation of the transporters in mammalian systems rather than those in plants or microorganisms. We were invited to write this review for the Annual Review of Nutrition, which has the highest overall citation index in the nutrition field.

We provided an in-depth review of all known zinc transporters from a physiologic perspective that had not been done previously.

The review article discusses the proteins that control the entry of zinc into and out of cells of all body tissues. Zinc is an essential dietary micronutrient that carries out many important functions. Hormones and mediators of the immune system also regulate zinc transporter genes and, in this way, influence how this essential nutrient is utilized in health and disease.

Cousins has been involved in zinc research for 30 years. He became involved through an interest in how metals in the diet are metabolically handled, and how they function. He is a professor of nutritional biochemistry. Our lab’s hypothesis is that, through regulation of specific genes by zinc directly and through the action of hormones and immune regulators indirectly, intracellular levels of zinc are controlled to carry out specific functions. Liuzzi has been interested in trace metals since his graduate research in Venezuela and at the University of Florida. He is a postdoctoral research associate at present.

Zinc deficiency is a problem mostly in developing countries, and leads to a high incidence of infectious disease. Using molecular techniques to detect specific zinc transporter genes could lead to a test to determine or assess the body status of zinc. Furthermore, during diseases such as cancer, particularly those of zinc-rich tissues such as the pancreas and prostate, the zinc levels change, suggesting this occurs through changes in expression of specific zinc transporter genes. Hence, zinc transporter detection might be an aid in cancer detection/control.