^

Health

A
A
A

Vitamin B12 metabolism

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
 
Fact-checked
х

All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.

We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.

If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.

Vitamin B 12 (cobalamin) - is a part of products of animal origin only: meat, liver, milk, eggs, cheese and others (the vitamin in the tissues of animals is a derivative of bacteria). Under the influence of culinary processing and proteolytic enzymes of the stomach, it is released and quickly binds to "R-binders" (trans-cobalamin I and III) - proteins with rapid electro-phoretic mobility, compared to the internal factor; to a lesser extent, vitamin B 12 is combined with an internal factor (WF, factor of Castle) - glycoprotein, produced by parietal cells of the fundus and the body of the stomach. Under the influence of proteases of pancreatic juice complex R-vitamin B, 2, vitamin B 12 is destroyed and released , which combines with the internal factor, forming a complex of vitamin B 12- WP. The latter is dnomerized and binds to specific receptors in the ileum. In the presence of calcium ions and at pH 7.0, this complex is cleaved and vitamin B 12 penetrates into the mitochondria of the cells of the intestinal mucosa. Hence, vitamin B 12 penetrates into the blood, where it combines with the transport protein transcobalamin II (TK II), which delivers the vitamin to the target tissues - hepatocytes, hematopoietic cells and others.

The release of vitamin B 12 from the TKP-B 12 complex in the cell occurs in 3 stages:

  1. binding of the complex to cell receptors;
  2. its endocytosis;
  3. lysosomal hydrolysis with the release of vitamin.

Part of the vitamin B 12 in the blood serum is associated with cobalophilins ("R-binders") - transcobalamin I and III. These B 12- binding glycoproteins release it only in the liver. In the presence of a large amount of vitamin B 12 about 1% of it can penetrate into the blood by passive diffusion.

The main depot of vitamin B 12 is the liver, in 1 g of which contains 1 μg of vitamin B 12. In healthy term infants reserves of vitamin B 12 in the liver up to 20-25 ug depot abruptly exhausted by the year. The daily requirement for vitamin B 12 in an infant is 0.1 μg, and in an adult it is 5-7 μg. In 100 ml of female milk contains 0.11 μg of vitamin B 12.

Vitamin B 12 is mainly secreted with bile, its loss also occurs with feces; a day, 0.1% of the total deposited vitamin is lost. The existence of the intestinal-hepatic circulation of vitamin B 12 - about 3/4 of the vitamin isolated with bile, is again reabsorbed. This explains the development of megaloblastic anemia in 1-3 years after receipt of the complete cessation of vitamin B 12 in the body. The physiological losses of the vitamin in the urine are very insignificant.

trusted-source[1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12], [13], [14], [15]

Translation Disclaimer: For the convenience of users of the iLive portal this article has been translated into the current language, but has not yet been verified by a native speaker who has the necessary qualifications for this. In this regard, we warn you that the translation of this article may be incorrect, may contain lexical, syntactic and grammatical errors.

You are reporting a typo in the following text:
Simply click the "Send typo report" button to complete the report. You can also include a comment.