STUDIES ON AN IRON-BINDING COMPONENT IN HUMAN GASTRIC JUICE

Evidence has been furnished confirming the presence of an iron-binding component gastroferrin, in human gastric juice The unusual iron-saturation curve shown by gastroferrin— increased iron-binding with increased iron concentration but total loss of iron binding beyond a certain concentration-is a consequence of its precipitation with the iron it has been holding in solution. Since carbohydrate but no measurable amount of protein is lost from solution, it seems reasonable to conclude that although gastroferrin may contain some protein it is essentially carbohydrate.