B Vitamins and One-Carbon Metabolism: Implications in Human Health and Disease
1
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
2
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Nutrients 2020, 12(9), 2867; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092867
Received: 31 August 2020
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Revised: 17 September 2020
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Accepted: 17 September 2020
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Published: 19 September 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water-Soluble Vitamins in Development, Blood Cell Maintenance and Cancer)
Vitamins B9 (folate) and B12 are essential water-soluble vitamins that play a crucial role in the maintenance of one-carbon metabolism: a set of interconnected biochemical pathways driven by folate and methionine to generate methyl groups for use in DNA synthesis, amino acid homeostasis, antioxidant generation, and epigenetic regulation. Dietary deficiencies in B9 and B12, or genetic polymorphisms that influence the activity of enzymes involved in the folate or methionine cycles, are known to cause developmental defects, impair cognitive function, or block normal blood production. Nutritional deficiencies have historically been treated with dietary supplementation or high-dose parenteral administration that can reverse symptoms in the majority of cases. Elevated levels of these vitamins have more recently been shown to correlate with immune dysfunction, cancer, and increased mortality. Therapies that specifically target one-carbon metabolism are therefore currently being explored for the treatment of immune disorders and cancer. In this review, we will highlight recent studies aimed at elucidating the role of folate, B12, and methionine in one-carbon metabolism during normal cellular processes and in the context of disease progression.
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Keywords:
folate; Vitamin B12; methionine; one-carbon metabolism
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MDPI and ACS Style
Lyon, P.; Strippoli, V.; Fang, B.; Cimmino, L. B Vitamins and One-Carbon Metabolism: Implications in Human Health and Disease. Nutrients 2020, 12, 2867. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092867
AMA Style
Lyon P, Strippoli V, Fang B, Cimmino L. B Vitamins and One-Carbon Metabolism: Implications in Human Health and Disease. Nutrients. 2020; 12(9):2867. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092867
Chicago/Turabian StyleLyon, Peter, Victoria Strippoli, Byron Fang, and Luisa Cimmino. 2020. "B Vitamins and One-Carbon Metabolism: Implications in Human Health and Disease" Nutrients 12, no. 9: 2867. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092867
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