OBJECTIVETo quantitatively and comprehensively investigate the association between maternal folate supplementation during pregnancy and the risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the offspring.

METHODSPubMed, Embase, Scopus, Cochrane Library, EBSCO, CNKI, Wanfang Data, VIP Database, and Chinese Biomedical Database were searched to collect the articles on maternal folate supplementation during pregnancy and the risk of ASD in children. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to determine the effect size. Stata 12.0 software was used for the Meta analysis. Publication bias evaluation and sensitivity analysis were also performed.

RESULTSA total of 10 articles were included according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, including 15 studies which involved 4 459 cases and 1 225 835 controls. The Meta analysis showed that maternal folate supplementation during pregnancy significantly reduced the risk of ASD in the offspring in the total population (OR=0.798, 95%CI: 0.669-0.952, P=0.012). The subgroup analysis revealed that maternal folate supplementation during pregnancy was associated with a reduced risk of ASD in the offspring in both the Asian population (OR=0.664, 95%CI: 0.428-1.032, P=0.069) and the Western population (OR=0.817, 95%CI: 0.671-0.996, P=0.045).

CONCLUSIONSMaternal folate supplementation during pregnancy may reduce the risk of ASD in the offspring, especially in the Western population.

Autism Spectrum Disorder ; etiology ; Dietary Supplements ; Female ; Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Risk

BACKGROUNDFolate plays a critical role in nucleotide synthesis and DNA methylation, and was considered to be associated with anti-carcinogenesis.

RESULTSfrom studies that concern the relationship between the folate intake or serum folate levels and lung cancer risk showed no consistency, which requires our further comprehensive meta-analysis.

METHODSSystematic literature search was conducted to identify the relevant studies (published prior to February 2013) according to standard protocol. Estimated effects were calculated under both random-effects and fixed-effects models. Heterogeneity between studies and publication bias were also evaluated.

RESULTSA total of 4390 cases and 6138 controls from 6 case-control studies revealed a significant overall inverse association between folate intake and lung cancer risk (OR = 0.74, 95%CI = 0.65 - 0.84, P < 0.001). Summary of 1438 cases and 2582 controls from 4 case-control studies and 44 cases out of a cohort of 1988 participants suggested a marginal association without significance (OR = 0.78, 95%CI = 0.60 - 1.02, P = 0.075) between high serum folate levels and less lung cancer susceptibility; however, subgroup analysis about population-based case-control studies showed that high serum folate levels significantly associated with the reduced lung cancer risk (OR = 0.76, 95%CI = 0.58 - 1.00, P = 0.048).

CONCLUSIONHigher folate intake can be a protective factor against lung cancer risk, and higher serum folate level is probably associated with reduced lung cancer risk in marginal manner, though more studies are warranted to confirm these associations.

Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; blood ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; blood ; epidemiology ; Risk Factors

Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Neural Tube Defects ; prevention & control

Maternal nutrition during pregnancy plays a vital role in the health of the offspring. Methyl donor nutrients, including folate, vitamin B, choline, betaine, and methionine, directly affect DNA methylation and are closely associated with the health of the offspring. As an important part of epigenetics, DNA methylation plays an important role in the maintenance of normal cellular function, gene expression regulation, and embryonic development. Recent studies have shown that maternal nutrition may have a long-lasting effect on the health of the offspring via the changes in genomic DNA and/or methylation level in the promoter region in specific genes. Therefore, this review article focuses on the effect of maternal intake of methyl donor nutrients during pregnancy on DNA methylation, in order to explore the effect of the changed methylation status on the health of the offspring at the molecular level.
Betaine ; administration & dosage ; Choline ; administration & dosage ; DNA Methylation ; Female ; Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Maternal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena ; Methionine ; administration & dosage ; Pregnancy ; Vitamin B 12 ; administration & dosage

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to estimate dietary folate intake and food sources of children and adolescents using a nutrient database revised based on measured folate in selected foods. METHODS: Folate content in 51 foods known as folate sources was measured by microbiological assay after trienzyme extraction. Folate intake was estimated from a part of the data of 'Dietary Intake Survey of Infants, Children and Adolescents in 2007~2008' conducted by the Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) and the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI). The study subjects were 567 children aged 1~19 years living in the Chungcheong area who completed two 24-hour recalls. RESULTS: Folate values were revised by replacing the values in the current database with the analyzed values except when the value in the current database was between the analytical values or was not different from the mean analytical value by more than 10%. Among the revised values of 40 food items, folate values of 36 foods were lower than the current values. Mean folate intakes estimated with the revised database were approximately 70~80% lower than those estimated with the current database. Mean folate intakes of males aged 12~14 and females aged 12~19 were lower than the 2010 Recommended Nutrient Intakes (RNIs). Chicken's eggs, Kimchi, rice, mandarin, and laver were found to be main food sources of folate. CONCLUSION: In this study, mean dietary folate intakes were lower than those estimated with the current database. Further analyses for folate content especially in cooked foods commonly consumed in Korea are needed using a reliable assay in order to accurately assess folate intake of the Korean population. In addition, nutrition education should be provided for adolescent females in order to increase consumption of folate-rich foods.
Adolescent* ; Child* ; Education ; Eggs ; Female ; Folic Acid* ; Humans ; Infant ; Korea ; Male ; Ovum ; United States Food and Drug Administration

OBJECTIVEThe database from Chinese Birth Defects Monitoring Network was used to describe the epidemiological features and secular trends of neural tube defects (NTDs) prevalence during Jan. 1996 to Dec. 2000, including anencephaly, spina bifida and encephalocele.

METHODSData were collected with hospital-based cluster sampling method. During the period, all live or still births with 28 weeks or more of gestation were assessed within seven days after delivery.

RESULTSThere were 2 873 case with NTDs identified from 2 281 616 births, with an overall prevalence rate of 12.95 per 10,000 births. And, the prevalence rates of anencephaly, spina bifida and encephalocele were 5.02 per 10,000, 6.30 per 10,000 and 1.64 per 10,000, respectively. Significant falls in overall prevalence rates of NTDs and of anencephaly were observed. The prevalence rates of NTDs were 9.75 per 10,000 and 15.96 per 10,000 in male and female births, respectively, 7.76 per 10,000 and 25.20 per 10,000 in the urban and rural areas, respectively, and 19.90 per 10,000 and 5.81 per 10,000 in north and south China, respectively. The prevalence was higher in the groups with maternal age of less than 20 years and more than 30 years than in those other maternal ages. Preterm babies and babies with low birth weight accounted for 50.9% and 50.6% of perinatal babies with NTDs, respectively, with a perinatal mortality of 77.8%.

CONCLUSIONSIn China, the occurrence of NTDs was higher in female births than in male births, higher in the rural than in the urban, and higher in the north than in the south. Annual prevalence rate of NTDs in China presented a declining trend, but still higher than that in the other countries at the same time period. Babies with NTDs were in poor birth quality, higher perinatal mortality and poor prognosis. Effective preventive measures and prenatal diagnosis should be strengthened to reduce the occurrences of neural tube defects.

Adult ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Neural Tube Defects ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; Pregnancy

OBJECTIVETo synthesize and characterize paclitaxel (PTX)-loaded folate-conjugated chitosan (FA-CTS/PTX) nanoparticles and evaluate its cytotoxicity in vitro.

METHODSCTS/PTX and FA-CTS/PTX nanoparticles were prepared using reductive amidation and ionic gelation of chitosan with tripolyphosphate anions (TPP). The particle size was determined by laser scattering and the morphology observed using transmission electron microscopy, and the PTX content in the nanoparticles was determined using ultraviolet spectrophotometer at 227 nm. The in vitro cytotoxicity of the nanoparticles against HeLa cells was evaluated by MTT assay. Fluorescence microscopy was used to observe the HeLa cells incubated with FA-chitosan nanoparticles in the presence or absence of folic acid in the culture medium.

RESULTSPTX loading did not cause adhesion of the FA-CTS nanoparticles, which presented with uniform spherical morphology with an average diameter of 282.8 nm. The loading and encapsulation efficiencies of FA-CTS/PTX were 9.0% and 75.4%, respectively. The FA-CTS nanoparticles showed a greater extent of intracellular uptake in the absence of folic acid, indicating that the cellular uptake of the nanoparticles occurred through endocytosis mediated by the folate receptors. The PTX-loaded FA-CTS nanoparticles exhibited potent cytotoxicity against HeLa cells, an effect 2- to 3-fold stronger than that of PTX-loaded CTS nanoparticles.

CONCLUSIONFA-CTS can be a promising drug carrier with high efficiency in condensing drug, good tumor-targeting ability and low cytotoxicity.

Antineoplastic Agents ; chemistry ; Chitosan ; chemistry ; Drug Carriers ; Drug Compounding ; Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; HeLa Cells ; Humans ; Nanoparticles ; chemistry

Objective: To determine the prevalence and determinants of folic acid (FA) supplementation in Chinese couples planning for pregnancy and in women during early pregnancy. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study based on the Shanghai PreConception Cohort (SPCC) study. Data on FA supplementation and socio-demographic features were collected using questionnaires. Couples visiting clinics for pre-pregnancy examination and pregnant women at < 14 gestational weeks were recruited in Shanghai, China, between March 2016 and September 2018. Results: Among the pregnancy planners, 42.4% (4,710/11,099) women and 17.1% (1,377/8,045) men used FA supplements, while 93.4% (14,585/15,615) of the pregnant women used FA supplements. FA supplement use was higher in female pregnancy planners who were older ( : 1.13, 95% : 1.08-1.18), had higher education ( : 1.71, 95% : 1.53-1.92), and were residing in urban districts ( : 1.06, 95% : 1.01-1.11) of FA supplementation; female pregnancy planners with alcohol consumption ( : 0.95, 95% : 0.90-0.99) had lower odds of FA supplementation. In early pregnancy, women with higher educational level ( : 1.04, 95% : 1.03-1.06), who underwent pre-pregnancy examination ( : 1.02, 95% : 1.01-1.03) had higher odds of using an FA supplement; older aged ( : 0.99, 95% : 0.98-0.99), and multigravida ( : 0.97, 95% : 0.96-0.98) had lower odds of FA supplementation. Conclusion Although the majority of pregnant women took FA supplements, more than half of the women planning for pregnancy did not. Urgent strategies are needed to improve pre-conception FA supplementation.
Adult ; China ; Cohort Studies ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Diet ; Dietary Supplements ; analysis ; Female ; Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; Humans ; Male ; Pregnancy ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Vitamin B Complex ; administration & dosage ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo explore the effect of low-dose folate on plasma homocysteinemia (Hcy) and chemokine levels in patients with hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy).

METHODSForty HHcy patients were treated with 0.8 mg/d folate for 6 months. Plasma levels of Hcy, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), interleukin-8 (IL-8), malondialdehyde (MDA), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured before and after folate treatment.

RESULTSPlasma level of Hcy significantly decreased after folate treatment [(57.1 +/- 18.0) micromol/L vs (25.8 +/- 12.0) micromol/L, P <0.05]. However, the plasma levels of MCP-1, IL-8, SOD, and MDA were not changed after folate treatment.

CONCLUSIONFolate treatment can decrease the plasma Hcy level in HHcy patients; however, it has no obvious effects on the chemokine levels.

Aged ; Chemokines ; blood ; Female ; Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Homocysteine ; blood ; Humans ; Hyperhomocysteinemia ; blood ; drug therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo describe the epidemiological characteristics on the supplement of folic acid in progestation and early pregnancy, and to probe the protective effects of supplement of folic acid in early pregnancy against pregnant depression, in Ma'anshan city, Anhui province.

METHODSIn this cohort study, 5 150 subjects who had their first antenatal examination at Ma'anshan Maternal and Child Care Centers were recruited under informed consent, from October 2008 to October 2010. All the information were collected through questionnaires in the first, second and third trimesters respectively. A "Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D)" was used to assess the mood of depression in the second questionnaire. Single factor analysis and the unconditional multivariate logistic regression were applied to analyze the association of supplement folic acid in peri-conceptional period and pregnancy depression.

RESULTSIn the study, the prevalence of those who had never taken the supplement folic acid but only the supplement folic acid in progestation and supplement in the first-trimester, or supplement in the peri-conceptional period were 27.3%,0.5%, 27.4% and 17.9%, respectively. The incidence of pregnancy depression was 4.8% (247/5 150). Data from logistic regression analysis showed that, supplement of folic acid only in the first-trimester or in the peri-conceptional period were negatively associated with pregnancy depression even after adjustment for potential confounders. The adjusted odds ratio were 0.63 (95%CI:0.44-0.90) and 0.61 (95%CI:0.39-0.95) respectively.

CONCLUSIONSupplement of folic acid in peri-conceptional period could be a preventive factor for pregnancy depression.

Adult ; Cohort Studies ; Depression ; prevention & control ; Female ; Folic Acid ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Care ; Prospective Studies ; Surveys and Questionnaires