[ RadSafe ] Plutonium tricks cells by "pretending" to be iron

[Cary Renquist]

Plutonium tricks cells by "pretending" to be iron
http://j.mp/nZoxoB


Plutonium gets taken up by our cells much as iron does, even though
there's far less of it to go around.

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National
Laboratory and Northwestern University have identified a new biological
pathway by which plutonium finds its way into mammalian cells. The
researchers learned that, to get into cells, plutonium acts like a
"Trojan horse," duping a special membrane protein that is typically
responsible for taking up iron.

Cary
--
Cary.renquist at ezag.com