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10:01
In vitro Methylation Assay to Study Protein Arginine Methylation
Published on: October 5, 2014
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Folinic Acid Increases Protein Arginine Methylation in Human Endothelial Cells
Ruben Esse1,2,3, Tom Teerlink4, Pieter Koolwijk5
1Institute for Medicines and Pharmaceutical Sciences (iMed.UL), Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lisbon, 1649-003 Lisbon, Portugal. rmesse@bu.edu.
Nutrients
|March 29, 2018
Summary
Folic acid supplementation may improve cellular methylation and reduce cardiovascular risk, but only when methionine is restricted. This suggests reevaluating its benefits in specific dietary contexts.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Cell Biology
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Elevated total homocysteine (tHcy) is linked to cardiovascular disease risk.
- Cellular hypomethylation, due to accumulating S-adenosylhomocysteine (AdoHcy), is a proposed mechanism.
- Understanding the interplay of nutrients like folate and methionine is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of folate (folinic acid) and methionine restriction on intracellular AdoHcy levels.
- To assess the effect on protein arginine methylation status in human endothelial cells.
- To explore the conditions under which folic acid supplementation enhances cellular methylation.
Main Methods:
- Human endothelial cells were cultured with varying concentrations of folinic acid (FnA).
- Cells were subjected to conditions with or without methionine restriction.
- Levels of AdoHcy, AdoMet, tHcy, and protein-incorporated methylarginines were quantified using liquid chromatography.
Main Results:
- Folinic acid supplementation reduced tHcy levels regardless of methionine status.
- Intracellular AdoHcy levels decreased with FnA supplementation only under methionine restriction.
- Methionine-restricted cells supplemented with FnA showed increased protein arginine methylation.
Conclusions:
- Folic acid supplementation may enhance cellular methylation capacity in a methionine-restricted state.
- These findings suggest that the cardiovascular benefits of folic acid may be context-dependent on dietary methionine.
- Reevaluation of folic acid's role in endothelial homeostasis is warranted for individuals with low methionine intake.
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