Chelators in the Treatment of Iron Accumulation in Parkinson's Disease

Figure 2

Action of iron chelators targeting PD. All iron chelators mop up excess free, reactive iron, thus reducing the reduction of Fe²⁺ to Fe³⁺—a reaction that produces various ROS, such as the hydroxyl radical. Oxidative stress resulting from the generation of ROS produces a range of deleterious insults, which can be targeted with the multiple actions of inhibitors. This can attenuate the cell death that these events induce. Chelators with antioxidant properties inhibit the production of ROS, in an environment of diminished antioxidant activity. The dopamine-oxidising enzyme MAO-B, which resides in the outer membrane of mitochondria, can also be inhibited by some chelators.