Can folate intake reduce arsenic toxicity?
- PMID: 18522624
- PMCID: PMC4013823
- DOI: 10.1111/j.1753-4887.2008.00043.x
Can folate intake reduce arsenic toxicity?
Abstract
Arsenic-contaminated groundwater is a global environmental health concern. Inorganic arsenic is a known carcinogen, and epidemiologic studies suggest that persons with impaired arsenic metabolism are at increased risk for certain cancers, including skin and bladder carcinoma. Arsenic metabolism involves methylation to monomethylarsonic acid and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) by a folate-dependent process. Persons possessing polymorphisms in certain genes involved in folate metabolism excrete a lower proportion of urinary arsenic as DMA, which may influence susceptibility to arsenic toxicity. A double-blind placebo-controlled trial in a population with low plasma folate observed that after 12 weeks of folic acid supplementation, the proportion of total urinary arsenic excreted as DMA increased and blood arsenic concentration decreased, suggesting an improvement in arsenic metabolism. Although no studies have directly shown that high folate intake reduces the risk of arsenic toxicity, these findings provide evidence to support an interaction between folate and arsenic metabolism.
Figures
Similar articles
-
Folate and arsenic metabolism: a double-blind, placebo-controlled folic acid-supplementation trial in Bangladesh.Am J Clin Nutr. 2006 Nov;84(5):1093-101. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/84.5.1093. Am J Clin Nutr. 2006. PMID: 17093162 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.
-
Folic acid supplementation lowers blood arsenic.Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Oct;86(4):1202-9. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/86.4.1202. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007. PMID: 17921403 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.
-
Consumption of folate-related nutrients and metabolism of arsenic in Bangladesh.Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 May;85(5):1367-74. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/85.5.1367. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007. PMID: 17490975
-
Methylated arsenicals: the implications of metabolism and carcinogenicity studies in rodents to human risk assessment.Crit Rev Toxicol. 2006 Feb;36(2):99-133. doi: 10.1080/10408440500534230. Crit Rev Toxicol. 2006. PMID: 16736939 Review.
-
Nutrition, one-carbon metabolism and arsenic methylation.Toxicology. 2021 Jun 15;457:152803. doi: 10.1016/j.tox.2021.152803. Epub 2021 Apr 24. Toxicology. 2021. PMID: 33905762 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Characterization of Two Highly Arsenic-Resistant Caulobacteraceae Strains of Brevundimonas nasdae: Discovery of a New Arsenic Resistance Determinant.Int J Mol Sci. 2022 May 17;23(10):5619. doi: 10.3390/ijms23105619. Int J Mol Sci. 2022. PMID: 35628430 Free PMC article.
-
Relationship Analysis of Inorganic Arsenic Exposure and Metabolic Syndrome Based on Propensity Score Matching in Xinjiang, China.Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2022 Mar 25;15:921-931. doi: 10.2147/DMSO.S349583. eCollection 2022. Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2022. PMID: 35370411 Free PMC article.
-
Provision of folic acid for reducing arsenic toxicity in arsenic-exposed children and adults.Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021 Oct 18;10(10):CD012649. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD012649.pub2. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021. PMID: 34661903 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Folic acid supplementation enhances arsenic methylation: results from a folic acid and creatine supplementation randomized controlled trial in Bangladesh.Am J Clin Nutr. 2019 Feb 1;109(2):380-391. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/nqy148. Am J Clin Nutr. 2019. PMID: 30590411 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.
-
State of the science review of the health effects of inorganic arsenic: Perspectives for future research.Environ Toxicol. 2019 Feb;34(2):188-202. doi: 10.1002/tox.22673. Epub 2018 Dec 4. Environ Toxicol. 2019. PMID: 30511785 Free PMC article. Review.
References
-
- Mukherjee A, Sengupta MK, Hossain MA, et al. Arsenic contamination in groundwater: a global perspective with emphasis on the Asian scenario. J Health Popul Nutr. 2006;24:142–163. - PubMed
-
- Vahter M. Genetic polymorphism in the biotransformation of inorganic arsenic and its role in toxicity. Toxicol Lett. 2000;112-113:209–217. - PubMed
-
- Bates MN, Smith AH, Hopenhayn-Rich C. Arsenic ingestion and internal cancers: a review. Am J Epidemiol. 1992;135:462–476. - PubMed
-
- Yu RC, Hsu KH, Chen CJ, Froines JR. Arsenic methylation capacity and skin cancer. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2000;9:1259–1262. - PubMed
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical