title: Down-regulation of reduced folate carrier may result in folate malabsorption across intestinal brush border membrane during experimental alcoholism.
abstract: Folate plays a critical role in maintaining normal metabolic, energy, differentiation and growth status of all mammalian cells. The intestinal folate uptake is tightly and diversely regulated, and disturbances in folate homeostasis are observed in alcoholism, attributable, in part, to intestinal malabsorption of folate. The aim of this study was to delineate the regulatory mechanisms of folate transport in intestinal absorptive epithelia in order to obtain insights into folate malabsorption in a rat model of alcoholism. The rats were fed 1 g.kg(-1) body weight of ethanol daily for 3 months. A reduced uptake of [(3)H]folic acid in intestinal brush border membrane was observed over the course of ethanol administration for 3 months. Folate transport exhibited saturable kinetics and the decreased intestinal brush border membrane folate transport in chronic alcoholism was associated with an increased K(m) value and a low V(max) value. Importantly, the lower intestinal [(3)H]folic acid uptake in ethanol-fed rats was observed in all cell fractions corresponding to villus tip, mid-villus and crypt base. RT-PCR analysis for reduced folate carrier, the major folate transporter, revealed that reduced folate carrier mRNA levels were decreased in jejunal tissue derived from ethanol-fed rats. Parallel changes were observed in reduced folate carrier protein levels in brush border membrane along the entire crypt-villus axis. In addition, immunohistochemical staining for reduced folate carrier protein showed that, in alcoholic conditions, deranged reduced folate carrier localization was observed along the entire crypt-villus axis, with a more prominent effect in differentiating crypt base stem cells. These changes in functional activity of the membrane transport system were not caused by a general loss of intestinal architecture, and hence can be attributed to the specific effect of ethanol ingestion on the folate transport system. The low folate uptake activity observed in ethanol-fed rats was found to be associated with decreased serum and red blood cell folate levels, which might explain the observed jejunal genomic hypomethylation. These findings offer possible mechanistic insights into folate malabsorption during alcoholism.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
authors.forename: Abid
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hamid
authors.forename: Nissar Ahmad
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Wani
authors.forename: Satyavati
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rana
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Vaiphei
authors.forename: Akhtar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mahmood
authors.forename: Jyotdeep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kaur
mesh_terms: D000437:Alcoholism / Q000097:blood / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000818:Animals; D001692:Biological Transport / Q000187:drug effects; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D019175:DNA Methylation; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D015536:Down-Regulation; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D000431:Ethanol / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000187:drug effects; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007408:Intestinal Absorption; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism; D007422:Intestines / Q000187:drug effects; D007583:Jejunum / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D007700:Kinetics; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D008871:Microvilli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D058978:Reduced Folate Carrier Protein; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014316:Tritium
chemical_list: D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D058978:Reduced Folate Carrier Protein; D014316:Tritium; D000431:Ethanol; D005492:Folic Acid