Ferroportin

• OMIM: 604653
• UniProt: Q9NP59

Ferroportin ( FPN1, IREG1, SLC40A1 ) (from Latin ferrum = iron and portare = carry, bring ) is a membrane transport protein consisting of 571 amino acids, which is formed in the liver, spleen, kidney, heart, intestine and placenta and occurs. It is found in the basolateral membrane ( the membrane that shows the direction of blood ) of epithelial cells where it causes the iron export into the blood. Ferroportin, iron can bind only as Fe2 and transport. After transport and oxidation to Fe3 by the plasma protein ceruloplasmin or the membrane protein Hephaestin binding to transferrin for further transport in the blood can take place.

When hepcidin binds to ferroportin, ferroportin is transported and degraded in the cell interior, the cell can therefore give no more iron.

Mutations in the SLC40A1 gene can cause hemochromatosis type 4 in humans.