TY - JOUR
T1 - Short-term folic acid supplementation induces variable and paradoxical changes in plasma homocyst(e)ine concentrations
AU - Malinow, M. René
AU - Duell, P. Barton
AU - Williams, Michelle A.
AU - Kruger, Warren D.
AU - Evans, Alison A.
AU - Anderson, Peter H.
AU - Block, Peter C.
AU - Hess, David
AU - Upson, Barbara M.
AU - Graf, Eric E.
AU - Irvin-Jones, Andrea
AU - Wang, Liqun
PY - 2001
Y1 - 2001
N2 - Folic acid is presently the mainstay of treatment for most subjects with elevated plasma homocyst(e)ine concentrations [Plasma or serum homocyst(e)ine, or total homocysteine, refers to the sum of the sulfhydryl amino acid homocysteine and the homocysteinyl moieties of the disulfides homocystine and homocystein-cysteine, whether free or bound to plasma proteins.] Changes in homocyst(e)ine in response to folic acid supplementation are characterized by considerable interindividual variation. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that contribute to heterogeneity in short-term responses to folic acid supplementation. The effects of folic acid supplementation (1 or 2 mg per day) for 3 wk on plasma homocyst(e)ine concentrations were assessed in 304 men and women. Overall, folic acid supplementation increased mean plasma folate 31.5 ± 98.0 μmol/L and decreased mean plasma homocyst(e)ine concentrations 1.2 ± 2.4 μmol/L. There was evidence of substantial interindividual variation in the homocyst(e)ine response from -18.5 to +7.1 μmol/L, including an increase in homocyst(e)ine in 20% of subjects (mean increase 1.5 ± 1.4 μmol/L). Basal homocyst(e)ine, age, male gender, cigarette smoking, use of multivitamins, methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase, and cystathionine β-synthase polymorphisms accounted for 47.6% of the interindividual variability in the change in homocyst(e)ine after folic acid supplementation, but about 50% of variability in response to folic acid was not explained by the variables we studied.
AB - Folic acid is presently the mainstay of treatment for most subjects with elevated plasma homocyst(e)ine concentrations [Plasma or serum homocyst(e)ine, or total homocysteine, refers to the sum of the sulfhydryl amino acid homocysteine and the homocysteinyl moieties of the disulfides homocystine and homocystein-cysteine, whether free or bound to plasma proteins.] Changes in homocyst(e)ine in response to folic acid supplementation are characterized by considerable interindividual variation. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that contribute to heterogeneity in short-term responses to folic acid supplementation. The effects of folic acid supplementation (1 or 2 mg per day) for 3 wk on plasma homocyst(e)ine concentrations were assessed in 304 men and women. Overall, folic acid supplementation increased mean plasma folate 31.5 ± 98.0 μmol/L and decreased mean plasma homocyst(e)ine concentrations 1.2 ± 2.4 μmol/L. There was evidence of substantial interindividual variation in the homocyst(e)ine response from -18.5 to +7.1 μmol/L, including an increase in homocyst(e)ine in 20% of subjects (mean increase 1.5 ± 1.4 μmol/L). Basal homocyst(e)ine, age, male gender, cigarette smoking, use of multivitamins, methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase, and cystathionine β-synthase polymorphisms accounted for 47.6% of the interindividual variability in the change in homocyst(e)ine after folic acid supplementation, but about 50% of variability in response to folic acid was not explained by the variables we studied.
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U2 - 10.1007/s11745-001-0678-8
DO - 10.1007/s11745-001-0678-8
M3 - Article
C2 - 11837988
AN - SCOPUS:18244371100
SN - 0024-4201
VL - 36
SP - S27-S32
JO - Lipids
JF - Lipids
IS - SUPPL.
ER -