... and survival. This presents opportunities for the host to either harness their antimicrobial properties or limit their availability as defence strategies. Recent studies have shed some light on mechanisms by which copper and zinc regulation contribute to host defence, but there remain many unanswered questions...

... by microbial and other toxins, may contribute to the high dietary requirement for zinc. These arguments lead to the proposal that a previously unrecognized form of host defence is one of protection of the cell plasma membrane by divalent cations against damage induced by cytotoxic agents of environmental...