BMB-6 Vitamin B12 induces ASD and cancer-related changes to Histone 3 modifications
Abstract
B-vitamins, including Vitamin B12 and folic acid, have long been considered healthy and are prescribed at high doses, particularly if a woman wants to have children. High serum levels of Vitamin B12 are usually clinically ignored even though this induces production of Transcobalamin II antibodies (TCBII), leading to Vitamin B12 deficiencies in tissues once TCBII binds to Vitamin B12. Interestingly, rates of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) have been steadily rising since grains were fortified with Vitamin B12 in the 1990s. Given the possible environmental origins, epigenetics is now more frequently linked to ASD than genetics. Additionally, more children are diagnosed with ASD due to cognitive abnormalities when pregnant women have elevated levels of Vitamin B12. Therefore, we hypothesized that changes to epigenetic modifications associated with ASD will be found if we treat our cells with a 2x treatment of Vitamin B12, particularly for Histone 3 (H3). We used SH-SY5Y cells (a human neuronal cell line), and either gave them water as a control or 2x Vitamin B12 in the Cobamamide form found in fortified grains and drinks. We used a histone isolation kit and histone modification arrays for H3 to isolate histones and assess H3 modifications via ELISAs. Six key histone alterations were discovered; 3 were significant by paired two-tailed t-test and 3 were nearly significant, indicating possibly biological significance. Several altered H3 modifications are involved in ASD; others are involved in cell cycle progression, gene expression regulation, and DNA damage responses, indicating a potential role in cancer. Our findings indicate further research should be done into hypervitaminosis of Vitamin B12, as it may be dangerous despite current medical protocols to ignore high serum Vitamin B12 levels.
Keywords
Vitamin B12, epigenetics, histone modifications, ASD, cancer
BMB-6 Vitamin B12 induces ASD and cancer-related changes to Histone 3 modifications
University Readiness Center Greatroom
B-vitamins, including Vitamin B12 and folic acid, have long been considered healthy and are prescribed at high doses, particularly if a woman wants to have children. High serum levels of Vitamin B12 are usually clinically ignored even though this induces production of Transcobalamin II antibodies (TCBII), leading to Vitamin B12 deficiencies in tissues once TCBII binds to Vitamin B12. Interestingly, rates of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) have been steadily rising since grains were fortified with Vitamin B12 in the 1990s. Given the possible environmental origins, epigenetics is now more frequently linked to ASD than genetics. Additionally, more children are diagnosed with ASD due to cognitive abnormalities when pregnant women have elevated levels of Vitamin B12. Therefore, we hypothesized that changes to epigenetic modifications associated with ASD will be found if we treat our cells with a 2x treatment of Vitamin B12, particularly for Histone 3 (H3). We used SH-SY5Y cells (a human neuronal cell line), and either gave them water as a control or 2x Vitamin B12 in the Cobamamide form found in fortified grains and drinks. We used a histone isolation kit and histone modification arrays for H3 to isolate histones and assess H3 modifications via ELISAs. Six key histone alterations were discovered; 3 were significant by paired two-tailed t-test and 3 were nearly significant, indicating possibly biological significance. Several altered H3 modifications are involved in ASD; others are involved in cell cycle progression, gene expression regulation, and DNA damage responses, indicating a potential role in cancer. Our findings indicate further research should be done into hypervitaminosis of Vitamin B12, as it may be dangerous despite current medical protocols to ignore high serum Vitamin B12 levels.