Define about the Micro Minerals?

Micro minerals are those minerals, which comprise less than 0.01% of the total body weight and are required in concentrations of one part per million or less. Initially, these minerals were also referred to as 'trace minerals' or 'trace elements' as their concentration in tissues were not easily quantified by early analytical methods. A trace element/mineral, as you may be aware, can be defined as a chemical element present in minute quantities; especially one used by organisms and held essential to their physiology. A micro mineral or a micro nutrient, on the other hand, is an organic compound essential in minute amounts for the growth and health of an animal.

Like macro minerals, micro minerals must also be present in the body in optimal range for normal functioning. Whenever, the concentration is too low or too high, the body functions are impaired. The functions and routes of metabolism for some micro elements are well established both in animals and humans while for others, the data are available only from animal studies. They normally function as a cation (ion with a positive charge) complexed with organic ligands or chelators. Proteins are the most important chelators. Besides these, porphyrin (the ring structure present in haemoglobin) and corrins (the ring structure in vitamin B_I2) are other important chelators. As components of enzymes and proteins, these minerals frequently participate in redox reactions (reactions which involve the transfer of electrons) with the metal often functioning as the electron carrier. However, minerals such as zinc and manganese along with macro elements calcium and magnesium perform non-redox functions in proteins and enzymes. Since many of the micro minerals share common mechanism for absorption, they compete with each other for absorption in the small intestine. Thus, excess of one micro element can aggravate the deficiency of another. Iron and zinc are the best known examples.