| First Author | Essien FB | Year | 1993 |
| Journal | J Nutr | Volume | 123 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 27-34 |
| PubMed ID | 8421227 | Mgi Jnum | J:3845 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:52353 | Doi | 10.1093/jn/123.1.27 |
| Citation | Essien FB, et al. (1993) Methionine but not folinic acid or vitamin B-12 alters the frequency of neural tube defects in Axd mutant mice [published erratum appears in J Nutr 1993 May;123(5):973-4]. J Nutr 123(1):27-34 |
| abstractText | The Axd (axial defects) mutation, which causes open neural tube defects (NTD) in 25-30% of d 14 mouse embryos of heterozygous (Axd/+) matings and curly tails (CT) in 31%, can be useful in studying neurovertebral morphogenesis. Current interest focuses on the role of methionine in neurulation, because supplementation of dams with this essential amino acid (70 mg/kg body wt) has been shown to reduce by 41% the incidence of NTD among embryos of Axd/+ x Axd/+ crosses when administered on d 8 and 9 of pregnancy. The present experiments were undertaken to determine whether supplementation of dams with a higher dose of methionine could effect a greater level of remediation. At a dose of 180 mg/kg body wt, the amino acid produced a reduction in NTD of 47%, similar to that produced at 70 mg/kg body wt. Supplementation of dams of reciprocal matings of Axd/+ x BALB/cByJ or CF-1 mice allowed assessment of the effects of methionine in heterozygous embryos, which exhibit CT. The amino acid had no effect on Axd/+ embryos from the BALB crosses, but the frequency of CT declined significantly among embryos of the CF-1 outcrosses. Maternal supplements of folinic acid (33 mg/kg) or vitamin B-12 (330 mg/kg) did not alter the incidence of NTD or CT among Axd embryos. No difference in methionine concentration was detected in the serum of Axd/+ and +/+ dams. |
