VITAMIN B12 & ASAM FOLAT

AHDA FAZA HUNAFA - 1610211070

VITAMIN B12
Water soluble vitamin.
The term vitamin B12 refers to a family of cobalamin. This family includes analogs containing
cobalt-bound methyl groups (methylcobalamin), 5'-deoryadenosyl groups (adenosylcobalamin),
hydroxyl (OH -) groups (hydroxocobalamin), nitrito groups (nitritocobalamin), or water
(aquacobalamin).
Structure : cobalt-centered corrin nucleus.
Sources : vit b12 is synthesized by bacteria, but the vitamin produced from the microflora in the
colon is not absorbed. The richest sources of the vitamin are liver and kidney, milk,
eggs, fish, cheese, and muscle meats.
Function : coenzyme forms (adenosylcobalamin and methylcobalamin).
BIOCHEMICAL FUNCTION

Vitamin B12 is a coenzyme for two biochemical

reactions:
- as methyl B12 it is a cofactor for methionine
synthase, the enzyme responsible for
methylation of homocysteine to methionine
using methyl tetrahydrofolate (methyl THF) as
methyl donor
- second, as deoxy adenosyl B12 (ado B12) it
assists in conversion of methyl malonyl
coenzyme A to succinyl CoA

vitamin B12 is excreted intact by renal and biliary

routes. only the free cobalamins (not the
adenosylated or methylated forms) in plasma are
available for excretion.
FOLATE
Folate refers generally to pteroyl monoglutamic acid.
Sources: Folates exist as reduced folyl polyglutamates (of mostly
5-methyl-FH4 and 10-formyl-FH4) in various foods of plant and
animal origin. Liver, mushrooms, and green leafy vegetables
(especially spinach, asparagus, and broccoli) are rich sources.
Potatoes, whole-wheat bread, orange juice, and dried beans are
good sources.
The reduced forms in foods are easily oxidized, and losses of 50%
- 90% typically occur during storage, cooking, or processing at
high temperatures
FOLATE
Tetrahydrofolate produced from the vitamin folate, is the primary
one-carbon carrier in the body.
This vitamin obtains one-carbon units from serine, glycine,
histidine, formaldehyde, and formate. While these carbons are
attached to FH4 they can be either oxidized or reduced.
one-carbon units are transferred to the pyrimidine base of
deoxyuridine monophosphate (dUMP) to form deoxythymidine
monophosphate (dTMP), to the amino acid glycine to form
serine, to precursors of the purine bases to produce carbons C2
and C8 of the purine ring.
Krauses Food and Nutrition Theraphy 12th ed

Marks Basic Medical Biochemistry: A Clinical Approach, 2nd Edition

Hoffbrands Essential Haematology 7th ed