BGEN 3020 Lecture Notes - Neutropenia, Neutrophil, Ileum
24 Feb 2013
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B12 and folate are involved in dna synthesis, therefore, if you are b12 and/or folate def, you cannot make dna, specifically b/c you have a prob with making dmp (deoxythymidine monophosphate). B/c dna cannot be made, then you have large nucleus, and all nucleated the cells in your body are big why they are called megaloblastic anemias. B12 aka cobalamin; b12 has cobalt in it. Circulating form of folate is methyltetrahydrofolate (tetra = four). Purpose of cobalamin (b12) is to take the methyl group off of methyltetrahydrofolate. If you don"t get the methyl group off of folate, you will not make dna. So, if you are b12 def, you can"t get the methyl group off and cannot make dna. If you are def in folate, you can"t make dna. Cobalamin adds a methyl to group homocysteine; when you add a methyl group to homocysteine, it becomes methionine. Methionine = aa for 1 carbon transfer rxns. (methyl = ch3).
