Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats
Background: Folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 are essential nutritional components in one-carbon metabolism and are required for methylation capacity. The availability of these vitamins may therefore modify methylation of phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) to phosphatidylcholine (PC) by PE-N-methyltr...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BioMed Central Ltd
2012
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/72173 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8286-6825 |
| _version_ | 1811069525843509248 |
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| author | van Wijk, Nick Watkins, Carol J. Hageman, Robert J. J. Sijben, John C. W. Kamphuis, Patrick G. H. J. Wurtman, Richard Jay Broersen, Laus M. |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences van Wijk, Nick Watkins, Carol J. Hageman, Robert J. J. Sijben, John C. W. Kamphuis, Patrick G. H. J. Wurtman, Richard Jay Broersen, Laus M. |
| author_sort | van Wijk, Nick |
| collection | MIT |
| description | Background: Folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 are essential nutritional components in one-carbon metabolism and are required for methylation capacity. The availability of these vitamins may therefore modify methylation of phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) to phosphatidylcholine (PC) by PE-N-methyltransferase (PEMT) in the liver. It has been suggested that PC synthesis by PEMT plays an important role in the transport of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) like docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) from the liver to plasma and possibly other tissues. We hypothesized that if B-vitamin supplementation enhances PEMT activity, then supplementation could also increase the concentration of plasma levels of PUFAs such as DHA. To test this hypothesis, we determined the effect of varying the combined dietary intake of these three B-vitamins on plasma DHA concentration in rats. Methods: In a first experiment, plasma DHA and plasma homocysteine concentrations were measured in rats that had consumed a B-vitamin-poor diet for 4 weeks after which they were either continued on the B-vitamin-poor diet or switched to a B-vitamin-enriched diet for another 4 weeks. In a second experiment, plasma DHA and plasma homocysteine concentrations were measured in rats after feeding them one of four diets with varying levels of B-vitamins for 4 weeks. The diets provided 0% (poor), 100% (normal), 400% (enriched), and 1600% (high) of the laboratory rodent requirements for each of the three B-vitamins. Results: Plasma DHA concentration was higher in rats fed the B-vitamin-enriched diet than in rats that were continued on the B-vitamin-poor diet (P = 0.005; experiment A). Varying dietary B-vitamin intake from deficient to supra-physiologic resulted in a non-linear dose-dependent trend for increasing plasma DHA (P = 0.027; experiment B). Plasma DHA was lowest in rats consuming the B-vitamin-poor diet (P > 0.05 vs. normal, P < 0.05 vs. enriched and high) and highest in rats consuming the B-vitamin-high diet (P < 0.05 vs. poor and normal, P > 0.05 vs. enriched). B-vitamin deficiency significantly increased plasma total homocysteine but increasing intake above normal did not significantly reduce it. Nevertheless, in both experiments plasma DHA was inversely correlated with plasma total homocysteine. Conclusion: These data demonstrate that dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake can influence plasma concentration of DHA. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T08:11:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/72173 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T08:11:48Z |
| publishDate | 2012 |
| publisher | BioMed Central Ltd |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/721732022-09-30T08:12:14Z Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats van Wijk, Nick Watkins, Carol J. Hageman, Robert J. J. Sijben, John C. W. Kamphuis, Patrick G. H. J. Wurtman, Richard Jay Broersen, Laus M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences Wurtman, Richard Jay Watkins, Carol J. Background: Folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 are essential nutritional components in one-carbon metabolism and are required for methylation capacity. The availability of these vitamins may therefore modify methylation of phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) to phosphatidylcholine (PC) by PE-N-methyltransferase (PEMT) in the liver. It has been suggested that PC synthesis by PEMT plays an important role in the transport of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) like docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) from the liver to plasma and possibly other tissues. We hypothesized that if B-vitamin supplementation enhances PEMT activity, then supplementation could also increase the concentration of plasma levels of PUFAs such as DHA. To test this hypothesis, we determined the effect of varying the combined dietary intake of these three B-vitamins on plasma DHA concentration in rats. Methods: In a first experiment, plasma DHA and plasma homocysteine concentrations were measured in rats that had consumed a B-vitamin-poor diet for 4 weeks after which they were either continued on the B-vitamin-poor diet or switched to a B-vitamin-enriched diet for another 4 weeks. In a second experiment, plasma DHA and plasma homocysteine concentrations were measured in rats after feeding them one of four diets with varying levels of B-vitamins for 4 weeks. The diets provided 0% (poor), 100% (normal), 400% (enriched), and 1600% (high) of the laboratory rodent requirements for each of the three B-vitamins. Results: Plasma DHA concentration was higher in rats fed the B-vitamin-enriched diet than in rats that were continued on the B-vitamin-poor diet (P = 0.005; experiment A). Varying dietary B-vitamin intake from deficient to supra-physiologic resulted in a non-linear dose-dependent trend for increasing plasma DHA (P = 0.027; experiment B). Plasma DHA was lowest in rats consuming the B-vitamin-poor diet (P > 0.05 vs. normal, P < 0.05 vs. enriched and high) and highest in rats consuming the B-vitamin-high diet (P < 0.05 vs. poor and normal, P > 0.05 vs. enriched). B-vitamin deficiency significantly increased plasma total homocysteine but increasing intake above normal did not significantly reduce it. Nevertheless, in both experiments plasma DHA was inversely correlated with plasma total homocysteine. Conclusion: These data demonstrate that dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake can influence plasma concentration of DHA. Nutricia Advanced Medical Nutrition Danone Research 2012-08-16T18:33:57Z 2012-08-16T18:33:57Z 2012-05 2012-08-16T15:06:05Z Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 1743-7075 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/72173 van Wijk, Nick et al. “Combined Dietary Folate, Vitamin B-12, and Vitamin B-6 Intake Influences Plasma Docosahexaenoic Acid Concentration in Rats.” Nutrition & Metabolism 9.1 (2012): 49. Web. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8286-6825 en http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1743-7075-9-49 Nutrition and Metabolism Creative Commons Attribution http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0 Nick van Wijk et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. application/pdf BioMed Central Ltd BioMed Central Ltd |
| spellingShingle | van Wijk, Nick Watkins, Carol J. Hageman, Robert J. J. Sijben, John C. W. Kamphuis, Patrick G. H. J. Wurtman, Richard Jay Broersen, Laus M. Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats |
| title | Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats |
| title_full | Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats |
| title_fullStr | Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats |
| title_full_unstemmed | Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats |
| title_short | Combined dietary folate, vitamin B-12, and vitamin B-6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats |
| title_sort | combined dietary folate vitamin b 12 and vitamin b 6 intake influences plasma docosahexaenoic acid concentration in rats |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/72173 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8286-6825 |
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