The molecular and cellular effect of homocysteine metabolism imbalance on human health
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Disturbed homocysteine metabolism is associated with cancer
Review Article | OPEN | Published: 21 February 2019
Disturbed homocysteine metabolism is associated with cancer
Tauheed Hasan,
Reetika Arora,
[…]
Laishram Rajendrakumar Singh
Experimental & Molecular Medicine 51, Article number: 21 (2019) | Download Citation
Abstract
Hyperhomocysteinemia/Homocysteinuria is characterized by an increased level of toxic homocysteine in the plasma. The plasma concentration of homocysteine is 5–15 μmol/L in healthy individuals, while in hyperhomocysteinemic patients, it can be as high as 500 μmol/L. While increased homocysteine levels can cause symptoms such as osteoporosis and eye lens dislocation, high homocysteine levels are most closely associated with cardiovascular complications. Recent advances have shown that increased plasma Hcy is also a fundamental cause of neurodegenerative diseases (including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and dementia), diabetes, Down syndrome, and megaloblastic anemia, among others. In recent years, increased plasma homocysteine has also been shown to be closely related to cancer. In this review, we discuss the relation between elevated plasma Hcy levels and cancer, and we conclude that disturbed homocysteine metabolism is associated with cancer. Future clinical perspectives are also discussed.