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. 2021 Dec 13;13(12):4456. doi: 10.3390/nu13124456

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© 2021 by the authors.

Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Regulation of Zn²⁺ homeostasis. Zn²⁺ from drinking water and diet is partially absorbed by intestinal cells in the gastrointestinal tract. Zn²⁺ enters enterocytes via ZIPs and then leaves via ZNTs into the blood circulatory system. Along with the blood, Zn²⁺ is distributed throughout the tissues. In tissue cells, MTF-1 transcription factor and MT are responsible for regulating Zn²⁺ concentration. Unused Zn²⁺ is mainly excreted in the form of feces, urine, sweat, and semen. GI, gastrointestinal; ZIP, Zrt- and Irt-like protein; ZNT, Zn²⁺ transporters; MT, metallothionein; MTF-1, metal-responsive-element-binding transcription factor-1.