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Mild hyperhomocysteinaemia (mHH) is an independent risk factor for premature arteriosclerosis. We investigated the accuracy in the detection of early arteriosclerotic lesions in such patients. The left and right wall of the abdominal aorta, the aortic bifurcation and both common iliac arteries were evaluated with gated T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (gT1 MRI) and gated two-dimensional (2D) time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography (g2D-TOF MRA) and were compared with intra-arterial digital subtraction angiography (iaDSA) in 11 patients with arteriosclerosis and mHH. Six patients showed arteriosclerosis in one or more of the total number of 55 studied arterial segments with iaDSA. Thirty-two of 37 normal and 12 of 18 stenotic segments with gT1 MRI, and 29 normal and 6 stenotic segments with g2D-TOF MRA, were correctly classified. Sensitivity of gT1 MRI and g2D-TOF MRA versus iaDSA was 67 and 33 %, the specificity was 86 and 78 % and the accuracy was 80 and 64 %, respectively. We conclude that arteriosclerosis in patients with mHH is a regular finding, and gT1 MRI in such patients is an acceptable technique.

Homozygotes for homocystinuria due to cystathionine synthase (CS) deficiency accumulate homocysteine and methionine in their blood and tissues. High-dose pyridoxin, folic acid, vitamin B12, or betaine are therapeutical options to lower the elevated homocysteine concentration. These compounds stimulate the transsulfuration or remethylation of homocysteine. Despite such treatment, elevated blood homocysteine concentrations may persist in many homocystinurics. Therefore, it is warranted to study alternative regimen to reduce the blood homocysteine concentration in homocystinurics. Apart from entering the transsulfuration pathway, methionine can be catabolized via the transamination pathway, by conversion into 4-methylthio-2-oxobutyrate (MTOB), followed by oxidative decarboxylation of MTOB to 3-methylthiopropionate. Thiamine pyrophosphate, the active form of thiamine, is a cofactor of the supposed rate-limiting oxidative decarboxylation in the transamination of methionine. The effect of thiamine administered in 2 or 3 daily doses of 25 mg orally, was studied in nine homozygote CS deficient patients. Methionine levels decreased in 6 out of 9 patients. In 8 out of 9 patients, however, the levels of plasma homocysteine remained virtually unchanged, as did the serum transamination metabolites in all patients. We conclude that vitamin B1 cannot be used as an additional homocysteine-lowering treatment in most homozygotes for homocystinuria.

Previous studies have shown that elevated basal homocysteine levels are correlated among family members of patients with coronary vascular disease and juvenile venous thrombosis. This suggests the possibility of the presence of inherited basal mild hyperhomocysteinemia (mHH). We studied homocysteine levels, fasting as well as after methionine load, among 96 family members of 21 post-load hyperhomocysteinemic vascular index patients, i.e. 6 parents, 27 offspring, 38 siblings, 19 uncles and aunts and 6 cousins. In 15 out of 21 screened families post-load mHH was established in at least one family member. Fasting and post-load mHH was observed in 19 out of 89 (21%) screened family members (fasting homocysteine levels not measured in seven family members), and 31 out of 96 screened family members (32%), respectively. In 40% of all family members, post-load mHH was not accompanied by fasting mHH. We conclude that both fasting and post-load mHH seems to be inherited in the majority of hyperhomocysteinemic vascular patients.

Hyperhomocysteinaemia, defined as an abnormally high plasma homocysteine concentration after an oral methionine load, is common in young (< or = 50 years) patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease. It is thought to predispose to atherosclerosis by injuring the vascular endothelium. Treatment with pyridoxine and/or folic acid may lower plasma homocysteine levels. In mildly hyperhomocysteinaemic patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease, we studied the effect of daily treatment with pyridoxine (250 mg) plus folic acid (5 mg) on homocysteine metabolism (i.e. plasma concentrations in the fasting state and after methionine loading, in 48 patients) and on endothelial function (in 18 patients). Endothelial function was estimated as the plasma concentrations of the endothelium-derived proteins, von Willebrand factor (vWF), thrombomodulin (TM), and tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA). At baseline, fasting homocysteine levels were above normal in 24 of the 48 patients (50%); post-load levels, by definition, were above normal in 100% of patients. After 12 weeks of treatment, fasting and post-load levels were normal in 98 and 100% of patients, respectively. Endothelial function was assessed in 18 patients who completed 1 year of treatment. At baseline, median vWF (235%) and TM (57.1 ng mL-1) levels were above normal. At follow-up, vWF levels had decreased to 170% (P = 0.01) and TM levels had decreased to 49 ng mL-1 (P = 0.04). tPA levels were normal at baseline and did not change. Endothelial dysfunction is present in young patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease and hyperhomocysteinaemia. Pyridoxine plus folic acid treatment normalizes homocysteine metabolism in virtually all patients, and appears to ameliorate endothelial dysfunction.

Thermolability of 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) was examined as a possible cause of mild hyperhomocysteinemia in patients with premature vascular disease. Control subjects and vascular patients with mild hyperhomocysteinemia and with normohomocysteinemia were studied. The mean (+/- SD) specific MTHFR activity in lymphocytes of 22 control subjects was 15.6 (+/- 4.7) nmol CH2O/mg protein/h (range: 9.1-26.6), and the residual activity (+/- SD) after heat inactivation for 5 min at 46 degrees C was 55.3 (+/- 12.0)% (range: 35.9-78.3). By measurement of MTHFR activity, two distinct subgroups of hyperhomocysteinemic patients became evident. One group (n = 11) had thermolabile MTHFR with a mean (+/- SD) specific activity of 8.7 (+/- 2.1) nmol CH2O/mg protein/h (range: 5.5-12.7) and a residual activity, after heat inactivation, ranging from 0% to 33%. The other group (n = 28) had normal specific activity (+/- SD) of 21.5 (+/- 7.2) nmol CH2O/mg protein/h (range: 10.0-39.0) and a normal residual activity (+/- SD) of 53.8 (+/- 9.2)% (range: 33.1-71.5) after heat inactivation. The mean (+/- SD) specific activity of 29 normohomocysteinemic patients was 20.7 (+/- 6.5) nmol CH2O/mg protein/h (range: 9.4-33.8), and the mean (+/- SD) residual activity after heat inactivation was 58.2 (+/- 10.2)% (range: 43.0-82.0). Thus, in 28% of the hyperhomocysteinemic patients with premature vascular disease, abnormal homocysteine metabolism could be attributed to thermolabile MTHFR.

Purpose: Hyperhomocysteinemia is associated with arteriosclerotic and thromboembolic events. The homocysteine-lowering effect of combined treatment with vitamin B6 plus folic acid has never been explored in a large group of patients with vascular disease. Therefore we studied the effects of at least 6 weeks treatment with these vitamins in 72 patients with cardiovascular disease and mild hyperhomocysteinemia (defined as an increase of the plasma homocysteine level after methionine loading greater than 97.5 percentile of age-matched control subjects but less than 200 mumol/L)., Methods: The existence of mild hyperhomocysteinemia was investigated in 309 consecutive patients under 50 years of age with peripheral arterial occlusive disease, cerebral arterial occlusive disease, or coronary artery occlusive disease. All patients with an abnormal loading test result were treated with vitamin B6, 250 mg daily, plus folic acid, 5 mg daily. After 6 weeks of treatment a second methionine loading test was performed to assess the homocysteine-lowering effect., Results: Mild hyperhomocysteinemia was detected in 72 patients (23%), 33 (46%) of whom also had hyperhomocysteinemia when fasting. Treatment with vitamin B6 plus folic acid normalized the postload plasma homocysteine concentration in 66 of the 72 patients (92%), whereas fasting hyperhomocysteinemia was normalized in 30 of 33 (91%) patients. In six patients therapy failed to achieve normalization of the postload homocysteine levels. In three of these patients, the same treatment was continued for an additional 6 weeks, and in the remaining three patients betaine was added to the treatment regimen. After 6 weeks of additional treatment all six patients had normal postload plasma homocysteine concentrations., Conclusion: The prevalence of mild hyperhomocysteinemia in young patients with arterial occlusive disease is high. Simple and inexpensive therapy with vitamin B6 plus folic acid will normalize homocysteine metabolism, as assessed by the homocysteine plasma level after methionine loading, in virtually all these patients.

Mild hyperhomocysteinemia is recognized as a risk factor for premature arteriosclerotic disease. A few vitamins and other substances have been reported to reduce blood homocysteine levels, but normalization of elevated blood homocysteine concentrations with any of these substances has not been reported. Therefore, we screened 421 patients suffering from premature peripheral or cerebral occlusive arterial disease by oral methionine loading tests for the presence of mild hyperhomocysteinemia. Thirty-three percent of patients with peripheral and 20% of patients with cerebral occlusive arterial disease were identified with mild hyperhomocysteinemia (14% of the men, 34% of the premenopausal women, and 26% of the postmenopausal women). Mildly hyperhomocysteinemic patients were administered vitamin B6 250 mg daily. After 6 weeks methionine loading tests were again assessed to evaluate the effect of treatment. Patients with nonnormalized homocysteine concentrations were further treated with vitamin B6 250 mg daily and/or folic acid 5 mg daily and/or betaine 6 g daily, solely or in any combination. Vitamin B6 treatment normalized the afterload homocysteine concentration in 56% of the treated patients (71% of the men, 45% of the premenopausal women, and 88% of the postmenopausal women). Further treatment resulted in a normalization of homocysteine levels in 95% of the remaining cases. Thus, mild hyperhomocysteinemia, which is frequently encountered in patients with premature arteriosclerotic disease, can be reduced to normal in virtually all cases by safe and simple treatment with vitamin B6, folic acid, and betaine, each of which is involved in methionine metabolism.

Background and Purpose: Hyperhomocysteinemia and protein C deficiency are risk factors for thromboembolism. Hyperhomocysteinemia has been reported to inhibit the expression of thrombomodulin and to inactivate both thrombomodulin and protein C irreversibly, leading to decreased protein C activity., Case Descriptions: In a 16-year-old girl, who developed a sinus sagittalis thrombosis, and in her father, who experienced a transient ischemic attack, both hyperhomocysteinemia and protein C deficiency type 1 were present. Protein C deficiency alone was found in one of the two sisters, who was without any clinical vascular history., Conclusions: In this family with independently inherited hyperhomocysteinemia and protein C deficiency, clinical cerebrovascular disease occurred only in those members with a combination of both risk factors, suggesting a synergistic interaction between these thrombogenic risk factors.