In plain words
Dihydrofolate reductase, or DHFR, is an enzyme. Its job is to change into the active form of that the body can use. It works in the liver and in many other tissues. Folic acid is a man-made form of folate found in supplements and . Natural folate comes from leafy foods and other sources. Researchers have found that DHFR works at different speeds in different people. In pregnancy, folate supports the cells that form the baby's neural tube early on. Questions about folate and supplements are good to bring to a provider. The enzyme is one part of a larger system, not a test a mother would have done.
The deeper version
Folic acid is absorbed intact in the proximal small intestine, reduced by dihydrofolate reductase to dihydrofolate and then tetrahydrofolate, and enters for purine and thymidylate synthesis and methylation reactions. Bailey and Ayling (PNAS, 2009) reported that hepatic DHFR activity is slow and highly variable across individuals, raising questions about the that circulates at high intake. The Medical Research Council Vitamin Study (Lancet, 1991) reported the evidence that underpins preconception and prenatal folate guidance. The clinical significance of individual DHFR variation for pregnancy outcomes is not established, and common polymorphisms in the gene are a separate and more studied question.
Where it comes up
- Folate and folic acidPregnancy: Eating
- Prenatal vitamins: when to start and what's in themBefore Pregnancy
What mothers here say about dihydrofolate reductase
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Sources
- Bailey SW, Ayling JE — The extremely slow and variable activity of dihydrofolate reductase in human liver and its implications for high folic acid intake. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2009
- Crider KS et al. — Folic acid and the prevention of birth defects: 30 years of opportunity since the Medical Research Council's landmark trial. Advances in Nutrition, 2012