Modulation of intracellular iron levels by oxidative stress implicates a novel role for iron in signal transduction.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) display cytotoxicity that can be exacerbated by iron. Paradoxically, HeLa cells treated with the ROS-generators menadione and 2,3-dimethoxy-1,4-naphthoquinone display increased free labile iron. HeLa cells exposed to ROS undergo apoptosis but iron chelation limits the extent of cell death suggesting the rise in intracellular iron plays a signaling role in this pathway. This idea is supported by the fact that iron chelation also alters the pattern of ROS-induced phosphorylation of stress-activated protein kinases SAPK/JNK and p38 MAPK. Thus, ROS-induced increases in cellular free iron contribute to signaling events triggered during oxidative stress response.