Folate deficiency historical perspective

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

Folate deficiency was first discovered by Lucy Wills, an English hematologist, in 1931 while conducting seminal work in India in the late 1920s and early 1930s on macrocytic anemia of pregnancy.[1][2]

Historical Perspective

Discovery

  • Folate deficiency was first discovered by Lucy Wills, an English hematologist, in 1931 while conducting seminal work in India in the late 1920s and early 1930s on macrocytic anemia of pregnancy. During her study, she found that this nutrient was needed to prevent the anemia of pregnancy. Dr. Wills demonstrated that this condition could be reversed with brewer's yeast.
  • It was in the later 1930’s that folate, the naturally occurring form of folic acid, was isolated from brewer's yeast and folic acid was identified in the pathogenesis of anemia in pregnant women.
  • In 1941, it was first extracted by Mitchell and others.
  • In 1941, Folic acid received its name, when it was isolated from spinach ( folium= leaf) and was shown to be a growth factor for Streptococcus Lactis R( S.Faecalis)
  • In August 1943,Bob Stokstad, Lederle Laboratory scientist, isolated the pure folate crystals form, from one and half tons of liver,determined its structure and synthesized it.
  • In 1945, soon after the synthesis of folic acid, it was realized that it is effective in the treatment of megaloblastic anemia particularly related to pregnancy, lactation and malabsorption syndrome.
  • In 1963,Bob Stokstad, along with his colleagues at Berkeley, were first to isolate,purify and characterize many of the mammalian enzymes involved in the metabolism of folate.
  • During research on folate and folic acid, it was found that overexposure of folate therapy led the growth of tumors.
  • In 1948, G.H. Hitchings and G.B. Elion started research at the laboratories of Nobel Laureates on folate antagonists or anti-folates.  This was significant because aminopterin was discovered by Sydney Farber which led to several anti-cancer agents being developed that could inhibit normal metabolic reactions.

References

  1. Hoffbrand, A. V.; Weir, D. G. (2001). "The history of folic acid". British Journal of Haematology. 113 (3): 579–589. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2141.2001.02822.x. ISSN 0007-1048.
  2. THOMSON DL (1947). "The folic acid story". Can Med Assoc J. 56 (4): 432–5. PMC 1591988. PMID 20286957.

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