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Effect of L-Methionine Feeding on Serum Homocysteine and Glutathione Levels in Male and Female Wistar Rats

Received: 19 February 2020     Accepted: 10 March 2020     Published: 23 March 2020
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Abstract

Homocysteine (Hcy) is a critical indicator of cardiovascular disease. High levels of Hcy have now been recognised as a risk factor for the development of a wide range of diseases. Hyperhomocysteinemia (Hhcy) can be induced by methionine or Hcy supplementation. On the other hand, Glutathione (GSH) is a major antioxidant in the body and also an important compound for oxidative defence. It is composed of 3 amino acids: cysteine, glutamate, and glycine. Interestingly, methionine is also a crucial compound in GSH synthesis. This study aims to assess the impact of 1% L-methionine feeding (10 or 30 weeks) on the body weight and serum Hcy and GSH levels of young adult (16 weeks) and middle-aged (36 weeks) Wistar rats of both sexes. Serum was analysed for Hcy and reduced GSH levels by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS) in response to 1% L-methionine feeding. One percent L-methionine feeding decreased body weight in all conditions investigated, although this only reached significance in males after 10 weeks supplementation and females after 30 weeks supplementation. It also induced a significant increase in the serum Hcy levels of male Wistar rats, whilst having no significant effect on Hcy serum levels in female rats. Finally, we also observed a small increase in serum GSH levels in female Wistar rats but no change in serum GSH levels in the males. These results suggest that methionine feeding affects body weight homeostasis and alters by products of methionine catabolism.

Published in Advances in Biochemistry (Volume 8, Issue 1)
DOI 10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14
Page(s) 21-25
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Methionine, Homocysteine, Reduced Glutathione, Body Weight

References
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    Shatha Ahmad Demerchi, James Robert McFarlane, Pierre Dominique Jean Moens, Nicola King. (2020). Effect of L-Methionine Feeding on Serum Homocysteine and Glutathione Levels in Male and Female Wistar Rats. Advances in Biochemistry, 8(1), 21-25. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14

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    ACS Style

    Shatha Ahmad Demerchi; James Robert McFarlane; Pierre Dominique Jean Moens; Nicola King. Effect of L-Methionine Feeding on Serum Homocysteine and Glutathione Levels in Male and Female Wistar Rats. Adv. Biochem. 2020, 8(1), 21-25. doi: 10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14

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    AMA Style

    Shatha Ahmad Demerchi, James Robert McFarlane, Pierre Dominique Jean Moens, Nicola King. Effect of L-Methionine Feeding on Serum Homocysteine and Glutathione Levels in Male and Female Wistar Rats. Adv Biochem. 2020;8(1):21-25. doi: 10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14,
      author = {Shatha Ahmad Demerchi and James Robert McFarlane and Pierre Dominique Jean Moens and Nicola King},
      title = {Effect of L-Methionine Feeding on Serum Homocysteine and Glutathione Levels in Male and Female Wistar Rats},
      journal = {Advances in Biochemistry},
      volume = {8},
      number = {1},
      pages = {21-25},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ab.20200801.14},
      abstract = {Homocysteine (Hcy) is a critical indicator of cardiovascular disease. High levels of Hcy have now been recognised as a risk factor for the development of a wide range of diseases. Hyperhomocysteinemia (Hhcy) can be induced by methionine or Hcy supplementation. On the other hand, Glutathione (GSH) is a major antioxidant in the body and also an important compound for oxidative defence. It is composed of 3 amino acids: cysteine, glutamate, and glycine. Interestingly, methionine is also a crucial compound in GSH synthesis. This study aims to assess the impact of 1% L-methionine feeding (10 or 30 weeks) on the body weight and serum Hcy and GSH levels of young adult (16 weeks) and middle-aged (36 weeks) Wistar rats of both sexes. Serum was analysed for Hcy and reduced GSH levels by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS) in response to 1% L-methionine feeding. One percent L-methionine feeding decreased body weight in all conditions investigated, although this only reached significance in males after 10 weeks supplementation and females after 30 weeks supplementation. It also induced a significant increase in the serum Hcy levels of male Wistar rats, whilst having no significant effect on Hcy serum levels in female rats. Finally, we also observed a small increase in serum GSH levels in female Wistar rats but no change in serum GSH levels in the males. These results suggest that methionine feeding affects body weight homeostasis and alters by products of methionine catabolism.},
     year = {2020}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Effect of L-Methionine Feeding on Serum Homocysteine and Glutathione Levels in Male and Female Wistar Rats
    AU  - Shatha Ahmad Demerchi
    AU  - James Robert McFarlane
    AU  - Pierre Dominique Jean Moens
    AU  - Nicola King
    Y1  - 2020/03/23
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    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14
    T2  - Advances in Biochemistry
    JF  - Advances in Biochemistry
    JO  - Advances in Biochemistry
    SP  - 21
    EP  - 25
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2329-0862
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ab.20200801.14
    AB  - Homocysteine (Hcy) is a critical indicator of cardiovascular disease. High levels of Hcy have now been recognised as a risk factor for the development of a wide range of diseases. Hyperhomocysteinemia (Hhcy) can be induced by methionine or Hcy supplementation. On the other hand, Glutathione (GSH) is a major antioxidant in the body and also an important compound for oxidative defence. It is composed of 3 amino acids: cysteine, glutamate, and glycine. Interestingly, methionine is also a crucial compound in GSH synthesis. This study aims to assess the impact of 1% L-methionine feeding (10 or 30 weeks) on the body weight and serum Hcy and GSH levels of young adult (16 weeks) and middle-aged (36 weeks) Wistar rats of both sexes. Serum was analysed for Hcy and reduced GSH levels by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS) in response to 1% L-methionine feeding. One percent L-methionine feeding decreased body weight in all conditions investigated, although this only reached significance in males after 10 weeks supplementation and females after 30 weeks supplementation. It also induced a significant increase in the serum Hcy levels of male Wistar rats, whilst having no significant effect on Hcy serum levels in female rats. Finally, we also observed a small increase in serum GSH levels in female Wistar rats but no change in serum GSH levels in the males. These results suggest that methionine feeding affects body weight homeostasis and alters by products of methionine catabolism.
    VL  - 8
    IS  - 1
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • School of Science and Technology, University of New England, Armidale, Australia

  • School of Science and Technology, University of New England, Armidale, Australia

  • School of Science and Technology, University of New England, Armidale, Australia

  • School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK

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