Bioavailability and bioefficacy of folate and folic acid in man

Brouwer, ID; Dusseldorp, M. van; West, C.E.; Steegers‐Theunissen, R.P.M.

doi:10.1079/095442201108729240

Cited by 9 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…In the literature, there are more studies utilising folic acid compared to 5‐MTHF, likely because folic acid is more bioavailable than other forms of folate and stable which is beneficial for diet fortification. It is important to note that folic acid and other forms of folate such as 5‐MTHF act via distinct pathways of metabolism and that the mode of delivery and amount consumed can change the efficacy of both folic acid and folate . Indeed, in the present study, we show that only animals with LFA or high 5‐MTHF with SST diets demonstrated significantly reduced levels of plasma homocysteine levels compared to the folate deficient group.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 45%

Folic acid, but not folate, regulates different stages of neurogenesis in the ventral hippocampus of adult female rats

Qiu

Gobinath

Wen

et al. 2019

J Neuroendocrinology

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Folate is an important regulator of hippocampal neurogenesis, and folic acid is needed prenatally to reduce the risk of neural tube defects. Both high levels of folic acid and low levels of folate can be harmful to health because low levels of folate have been linked to several diseases while high folic acid supplements can mask a vitamin B12 deficiency. Depressed patients exhibit folate deficiencies, lower levels of hippocampal neurogenesis, elevated levels of homocysteine and elevated levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, which may be inter‐related. In the present study, we were interested in whether different doses of natural folate or synthetic folic acid diets can influence neurogenesis in the hippocampus, levels of plasma homocysteine and serum corticosterone in adult female rats. Adult female Sprague‐Dawley rats underwent dietary interventions for 29 days. Animals were randomly assigned to six different dietary groups: folate deficient + succinylsulphathiazole (SST), low 5‐methyltetrahydrofolate (5‐MTHF), low 5‐MTHF + (SST), high 5‐MTHF + SST, low folic acid and high folic acid. SST was added to a subset of the 5‐MTHF diets to eliminate folic acid production in the gut. Before and after dietary treatment, blood samples were collected for corticosterone and homocysteine analysis, and brain tissue was collected for neurogenesis analysis. High folic acid and low 5‐MTHF without SST increased the number of immature neurones (doublecortin‐expressing cells) within the ventral hippocampus compared to folate deficient controls. Low 5‐MTHF without SST significantly increased the number of immature neurones compared to low and high 5‐MTHF + SST, indicating that SST interfered with elevations in neurogenesis. Low folic acid and high 5‐MTHF + SST reduced plasma homocysteine levels compared to controls, although there was no significant effect of diet on serum corticosterone levels. In addition, low folic acid and high 5‐MTHF + SST reduced the number of mature new neurones in the ventral hippocampus (bromodeoxyuridine/NeuN‐positive cells) compared to folate deficient controls. Overall, folic acid dose‐dependently influenced neurogenesis with low levels decreasing but high levels increasing neurogenesis in the ventral hippocampus, suggesting that this region, which is important for regulating stress, is particularly sensitive to folic acid in diets. Furthermore, the addition of SST negated the effects of 5‐MTHF to increase neurogenesis in the ventral hippocampus.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 45%

Folic acid, but not folate, regulates different stages of neurogenesis in the ventral hippocampus of adult female rats

Qiu

Gobinath

Wen

et al. 2019

J Neuroendocrinology

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“…Several factors account for this, such as the fact that folate is ''trapped'' in the matrix of plant foods. 36 The absorption of dietary folate is estimated to be only about 50%, but this remains to be verified in well-designed experiments in humans.…”

Section: Folatementioning

confidence: 99%

Dietary Determinants of Plasma Homocysteine Concentrations

Verhoef

Groot

2005

Seminars in Vascular Medicine

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Severe hyperhomocysteinemia is typically caused by rare enzymatic defects or by renal failure. In contrast, mild to moderate hyperhomocysteinemia chiefly results from suboptimal status of nutritional factors involved in homocysteine metabolism. Low dietary intake of folate is the most important nutritional cause of elevated homocysteine (tHcy) concentrations. Folic acid is more effective than dietary folate in lowering tHcy concentrations, and a daily dose of 400 mug of folic acid is the minimum daily dose associated with the maximum tHcy-lowering effect ( approximately 20-25% reduction). Mean fasting tHcy concentrations have dropped substantially in populations with mandatory folic acid fortification, and other B-vitamins, such as vitamin B (12), are important determinants of tHcy levels in this setting. Vitamins B (2) and B (6) have little influence on fasting tHcy concentrations, although the former may be relevant in individuals with the MTHFR 677 TT-genotype, and the latter may improve tHcy catabolism in elderly individuals. Betaine and choline can lower fasting tHcy concentrations to a similar extent as folic acid, particularly in the setting of a high intake of methionine. Consumption of tea and coffee increase tHcy concentrations by up to 20%. A high-protein meal also increases tHcy, but these changes are transient, and levels return to normal after an overnight fast. Serine and cystine also influence the methionine-induced postprandial rise in tHcy concentrations. In conclusion, alteration in dietary intake or use of folic acid supplements can substantially lower tHcy concentrations. However, it is not known whether lowering tHcy levels can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease or cognitive decline or prevent pregnancy complications or osteoporosis.

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“…Food products can be fortified to make up for the expected process loss, but the added active compounds may react with other food components, potentially reducing overall nutritional and organoleptic qualities (Salgueiro and others 2002; Xia and Xu 2005). The bioavailability of these active compounds can also be affected by their binding with the food matrix, the form of nutrient derivative available, and the gastrointestinal conditions that the compounds are subjected to (Ristow and others 1982; Hurrell 1997; Brouwer and others 2001; Basu and Donaldson 2003). To circumvent these problems, the fortified active compounds often need to be protected, using techniques such as spray‐drying microencapsulation, extrusion encapsulation, fluidized bed coating, coacervation, spray chilling, molecular inclusion using β‐cyclodextrin, protein precipitation, liposome entrapment and hydrogel entrapment (Gibbs and others 1999; Remondetto and others 2004; Yuliani and others 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electrospun Zein Fibers as Carriers to Stabilize (−)‐Epigallocatechin Gallate

Lim

Kakùda

2009

Journal of Food Science

195

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In this study, a method was developed for continuous electrospinning of ultrafine corn zein protein fibers with diameters ranging from 150 to 600 nm. Fiber-forming solutions with various zein concentrations (10% to 30%, w/w) and aqueous ethanol concentrations (60% to 90%, w/w) were electrospun at 15 and 20 kV. Scanning electron microscopy results showed that the morphology of zein fibers was affected by aqueous ethanol concentration, zein concentration, and the applied voltage. The optimal condition for forming bead-less fibers was found to be 20% protein, 70% alcohol, and 15 kV. The zein fibers resisted solubilization in water, although swelling and plasticization were apparent after the water treatment. The efficacy of zein fibers was tested for stabilization of a green tea polyphenol, (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), by incorporating the EGCG in zein fiber-forming solutions. Freshly spun fibers were less effective at immobilizing the EGCG upon immersion in water (82% recovery) as compared to fibers that were aged at 0% relative humidity for at least 1 d (>98% recovery) before water immersion. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy studies demonstrated that hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and physical encapsulation are the major contributors to the stabilization of EGCG in zein fibers in water.

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Bioavailability and bioefficacy of folate and folic acid in man

Cited by 9 publications

References 33 publications

Folic acid, but not folate, regulates different stages of neurogenesis in the ventral hippocampus of adult female rats

Folic acid, but not folate, regulates different stages of neurogenesis in the ventral hippocampus of adult female rats

Dietary Determinants of Plasma Homocysteine Concentrations

Electrospun Zein Fibers as Carriers to Stabilize (−)‐Epigallocatechin Gallate

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