Hyperhomocysteinemia can be ameliorated by dimethylsulfoniopropionate in place of folic acid in mice.
Acute homocysteinemia mice were prepared by forcibly oral administration of homocysteine (4 mM, 2 mL). The amounts of plasma homocysteine were estimated by a fluorescence method with HPLC. Folic acid (0.6 mM, 2 mL), DMSP, or betaine (20 mM, 2 mL each) was intraperitoneally administrated into the mice suffered from the acute homocysteinemia on the 20th, 40th or 60th min after the oral supplementation of homocysteine, then amounts of plasma homocysteine were determined by the HPLC method 40 min after each addition, respectively. The results indicated that the intraperitoneal addition of folic acid or DMSP in this order of the 40th, 60th and 20th min after the oral supplementation of homocysteine significantly reduce the quantities of plasma homocysteine, but betaine exerted the fairly lesser effects. The amounts of homocysteine without any additive linearly and rapidly appeared to increase up to 60 min, at which those were about 8-12 fold the normal levels of homocysteine, and thereafter decreased in these experiments. Accordingly, folic acid which is known to effectively improve homocysteinemia was proven to be completely replaced by DMSP under the experimental conditions.
Nakajima
Kenji
K
Laboratory of Biochemistry, Faculty of Nutrition, Koshien University, Hyogo, Japan. nakajima@koshien.ac.jp
D000818:Animals; D001622:Betaine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006710:Homocysteine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D020138:Hyperhomocysteinemia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D013452:Sulfonium Compounds / Q000008:administration & dosage*
D013452:Sulfonium Compounds; D006710:Homocysteine; D001622:Betaine; D005492:Folic Acid; C068078:dimethylpropiothetin