Regulation of Hepatic Betaine-Homocysteine Methyltransferase by Dietary Betaine

doi:10.1093/jn/113.3.519

The Journal of Nutrition

Volume 113, Issue 3, March 1983, Pages 519-521

https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/113.3.519 Get rights and content

Abstract

The level of betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase increases in the livers of rats fed diets supplemented with betaine or choline. The increase occurs within 3 days following the change in diet. When we administered betaine by intraperitoneal injection to rats fed choline-free diets, we observed a similar increase within 24 hours. Since betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase catalyzes a reaction which is essential for the catabolism of betaine, these changes provide a means for adaptation to excessive levels of dietary choline and betaine.

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Effect of guanidinoacetic acid and betaine supplementation in soybean meal-based diets on growth performance, muscle energy metabolism and methionine utilization in the bullfrog Lithobates catesbeianus
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Citation Excerpt :
BHMT expression was seen to increase in the GAA- or BT-supplemented diet groups in this study. The addition of BT upregulated the expression of CBS, and GAA supplementation increased the expression of MS. Many studies have reported that BT increases the activities of BHMT and CBS (Finkelstein et al., 1982; Finkelstein et al., 1983; Liu et al., 2014). Mudd and Poole (1975) showed Hcy was more inclined to be re-methylated when the methyl in the body was unstable.
This study was carried out to evaluate the impacts and interactions of guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) and betaine (BT) supplementation of soybean-meal-based diets on the growth, meat quality, and methionine utilization in the bullfrog Lithobates catesbeianus. A basal diet was supplemented with 0 or 4 g/kg of BT and/or 0, 0.4, or 4 g/kg GAA to formulate six experimental diets, designated Control (BT/GAA: 0/0), B0G0.4 (0/0.4), B0G4 (0/4), B4G0 (4/0), B4G0.4 (4/0.4) and B4G4 (4/4). Each diet was fed to three individual bullfrogs (initially weighing 51.70 ± 0.33 g) for 8 weeks. As a result, bullfrogs fed diets with GAA showed greater weight gain than the control group (P < 0.05). The addition of GAA or BT to the diets increased whole-body protein deposition and the hind leg index (P < 0.05). Diets supplemented with GAA led to reduced muscle glycolysis, which increased the muscle pH value 24 h after euthanasia (P < 0.05). However, a combination of BT and GAA had an insignificant effect on the expression of betaine homocysteine methyltransferase mRNA compared with the diets supplemented with GAA-only (P > 0.05). The findings of this study suggest that dietary GAA supplementation improves bullfrog growth performance and muscle energy metabolism after slaughter, but GAA combined BT supplementation does not improve methionine utilization for bullfrog.
Transcriptome analysis of hepatic gene expression and DNA methylation in methionine-and betaine-supplemented geese (Anser cygnoides domesticus)
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Citation Excerpt :
It has been shown that hepatic BHMT activity increases when Met-deficient diets containing adequate or excess choline and Bet are fed to chicks and rats (Emmert et al., 1996). Furthermore, Bet supplementation was found to elicit maximal hepatic BHMT activity when rats consumed diets with adequate choline, Met, and cysteine (Finkelstein et al., 1983). In agreement with these previous studies, we observed that supplementation of the basal feed of geese 1.2 g/kg of Met resulted in increased plasma HCY levels, indicating an increased transsulfuration flux in the liver.
Dietary methionine (Met) restriction produces a coordinated series of transcriptional responses in the liver that limits growth performance and amino acid metabolism. Methyl donor supplementation with betaine (Bet) may protect against this disturbance and affect the molecular basis of gene regulation. However, a lack of genetic information remains an obstacle to understand the mechanisms underlying the relationship between Met and Bet supplementation and its effects on genetic mechanisms. The goal of this study was to identify the effects of dietary supplementation of Met and Bet on growth performance, transcriptomic gene expression, and epigenetic mechanisms in geese on a Met-deficient diet. One hundred and fifty 21-day-old healthy male Yangzhou geese of similar body weight were randomly distributed into 3 groups with 5 replicates per treatment and 10 geese per replicate: Met-deficient diet (Control), Control+1.2 g/kg of Met (Met), and Control+0.6 g/kg of Bet (Bet). All geese had free access to the diet and water throughout rearing. Our results indicated that supplementation of 1.2 g/kg of Met in Met-deficient feed increased growth performance and plasma homocysteine (HCY) levels, indicating increased transsulfuration flux in the liver. Supplementation of 0.6 g/kg Bet had no apparent sparing effect on Met needs for growth performance in growing geese. The expression of many genes critical for Met metabolism is increased in Met supplementation group. In the Bet-supplemented group, genes involved in energy production and conversion were up-regulated. Dietary supplementation with Bet and Met also altered DNA methylation. We observed changes in the methylation of the LOC106032502 promoter and corresponding changes in mRNA expression. In conclusion, Met and Bet supplementation in geese affects the transcriptional regulatory network and alters the hepatic DNA methylation of LOC106032502.
Effects of dietary methionine and betaine on slaughter performance, biochemical and enzymatic parameters in goose liver and hepatic composition
2017, Animal Feed Science and Technology
Citation Excerpt :
Hepatic BHMT activity increased when Met-deficient diets containing adequate or excess choline and Bet were fed in chicks and rats (Emmert et al., 1996; Park and Garrow, 1999). Bet supplementation elicited maximal hepatic BHMT activity when rats consumed diets with adequate choline, Met, and Cys (Finkelstein et al., 1983). In agreement with these previous studies, 600 mg/kg of Bet reduced plasma total HCY and increased the mRNA level of the BHMT gene expression in liver was observed by us.
The effects of dietary methionine (Met) and betaine (Bet) on slaughter performance, serum biochemical parameters, and liver betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase (BHMT) were investigated in geese. Six Met-deficient diets were prepared according to a 2 × 3 factorial design that included two levels of Bet (0 and 600 mg/kg) and three levels of Met (0, 600, and 1200 mg/kg). Three hundred 21-d-old healthy male Yangzhou geese with similar body weight were randomly distributed into 6 groups with 5 replicates per treatment and 10 geese per replicate. All geese had free access to diets and water for 49 d. slaughter performance were recorded at 70 d of age. Results showed that increasing dietary levels of methionine gave a linear (P < 0.05) increase in body weight and average daily gain. No significant effect of dietary Met level was found on slaughter performance (P > 0.05). Geese that received 600 mg/kg Bet had a higher percentage of eviscerated yield than those that did not (P < 0.05). There were significant interaction effects between Met and Bet in dressing percentage, half-eviscerated yield, and eviscerated yield (P < 0.05). Increasing supplemental Met led to linear increases in serum concentrations of total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), and globulin (GLOB) and hepatic crude protein levels (P < 0.05). Bet supplementation also increased TP and ALB plus high- and low-density lipoprotein in serum and the mRNA level of BHMT (P < 0.05) in livers. In contrast, triglyceride and homocysteine were higher in geese that did not receive additional Bet than those in the Bet supplementation group (P < 0.05). The hepatic crude fat contents in the Bet supplementation group also decreased (P < 0.05). Significant interactions between Met and Bet supplementation (P < 0.05) were detected in several amino acids. In conclusion, optimal Met dietary supplementation could increase growth performance, serum TP, ALB, and GLOB and hepatic protein synthesis in growing goslings. Furthermore, dietary supplementation with Bet could possibly replace Met for slaughter performance through upregulation of BHMT gene expression.
B Vitamins Intake and Plasma Homocysteine in Vegetarians
2017, Vegetarian and Plant-Based Diets in Health and Disease Prevention
Dietary B vitamins play a key role in the regulation of plasma homocysteine, a potentially detrimental amino acid produced endogenously from methionine, when it becomes ≥10 μmol/L. Most lactovegetarian, ovolactovegetarian, and vegan diets are rich in the related B vitamins, with the exception of vitamin B₁₂, which is low because it is only found in dietary animal products: this can result in homocysteine concentrations becoming elevated, which has been associated to a range of increased risk of chronic medical conditions, in particular with cardiovascular disease. This chapter takes a journey through the relationship between dietary B vitamin status of vegetarians, methionine intake, and concentrations of plasma total homocysteine (tHcy).

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Regulation of Hepatic Betaine-Homocysteine Methyltransferase by Dietary Betaine

Abstract

Arch. Biochem. Biophys.

Biochem. Biophys. Res. Communs.

Regulation of homocysteine methyltransferases in rat tissue. Arch. Biochem. Biophys.

J. Biol. Chem.

Regulation of methionine metabolism in mammals