OTHER WATER-SOLUBLE VITAMINS

MINERALS
REQUIREMENTS & FUNCTION
 OTHER WATER-SOLUBLE VITAMINS
VITAMIN C

Vitamin C is a cofactor for mixed function oxidases involved in the hydroxylation of Lys
and Pro, synthesis of carnitine, synthesis of norepinephrine, absorption of iron by
reducing it to the ferrous state in the stomach..etc
 VITAMIN C
Chief functions in the body
• Collagen synthesis
• Strengthens blood vessel walls,
forms scar tissue, provides
matrix for bone growth
• Antioxidant
• Thyroxin synthesis-helps prevent
goiter
• Amino acid metabolism
• Strengthens resistance to infection
• Helps in absorption of iron
Significant sources
• Citrus fruits
• Cabbage-type vegetables, dark green
vegetables (such as bell peppers and
broccoli)
• Cantaloupe, strawberries
• Lettuce, tomatoes, potatoes
• Papayas, mangoes
• Easily destroyed by heat and oxygen

Vitamin C is an essential nutrient which cannot be synthesized by humans due to loss

of a key enzyme in the biosynthetic pathway.
The recommended dietary intakes for vitamin C are up to one hundred-fold higher
than that for many other vitamins
Hydroxylation of Proline and Lysine is catalized
by peptidyl hydroxylases; prolyl hydroxylase and
lysyl hydroxylase

Deficiency of vitamin C required for

hydroxylase results in scurvy in which bleeding
gums, swelling joins and impaired wound
healing results from the impaired stability of
collagen
Ascorbate is a cofactor for two alpha-ketoglutarate-requiring dioxygenase reactions
(epsilon-N-trimethyllysine hydroxylase and gamma-butyrobetaine hydroxylase) in the
pathway of carnitine biosynthesis.

Since vitamin C is concentrated in the adrenal gland, it may be required for

hydroxylation reactions in synthesis of some corticosteroids especially in periods of
stress.

Vitamin C also appears to modulate signal transduction pathways and gene expression
affecting vascular endothelial cells.
Ascorbic acid also acts as a nonenzymatic reducing agent. It aids in absorption of iron
by reducing it to the ferrous state in the stomach.
Vitamin C spares vitamin A, vitamin E, and some B vitamins by protecting them from
oxidation.
Vitamin C enhances utilization of folic acid, either by aiding conversion of folate to
tetrahydrofolate or formation of polyglutamate derivatives of tetrahydrofolate.
C vitamin Deficiency
deficiency invariably results from poor diet and/or increased need.
Smoking and oral contraceptives cause lower C vitamin levels.

• Capillary fragility
• Scurvy
• Decreased wound healing osteoporosis, hemorrahaging and anemia. Osteoporosis
results from the inability to maintain the collagenous organic matrix of the bone,
which leads to demineralization. Anemia results from extensive hemorrhaging
coupled with defects in iron absorption and folate metabolism.
symptoms of C vitamin Deficiency

• Nausea, abdominal cramps, diarrhea

• Headache, fatigue, insomnia
• Hot flashes, rashes
• Interference with medical tests, aggravation of gout symptoms,
urinary tract problems, kidney stones

C vitamin Deficiency
 High Ascorbate intakes

Oxalate is a major metabolite of ascorbic acid.Thus, high ascorbate intakes

could theoretically lead to the formation of oxalate kidney stones in predisposed
individuals.
However, most studies have shown that excess vitamin C is primarily excreted
as ascorbate rather than oxalate. Pregnant mothers taking megadoses of
vitamin C may give birth to infants with abnormally high vitamin C requirements,
but this is easily treated.

• Men: 90 mg/day
• Women: 75 mg/day
• Smokers: + 35 mg/day
• Upper Level (UL) for adults: 2000 mg/day
 CHOLINE
Choline have traditionally been considered as nonessential because they can
be synthesized de novo.
 CHOLINE
Choline is required for synthesis and release of acetylcholine, an important
neurotransmitter involved in memory storage, motor control, and other functions.
Choline is a precursor for synthesis of the phospholipids phosphatidylcholine
(lecithin) and sphingomyelin, which are important for membrane function, Intracellular
signaling, and hepatic export of very low-density lipoproteins. Phosphatidylcholine is
also important in removal of cholesterol from tissues, as it is a substrate for lecithin-
cholesterol acyltransferase (LCE) in reverse cholesterol transport.
However, current data are insufficient to draw firm conclusions about whether
choline and/or betaine supplementation have any effects on cardiovascular risk
 CHOLINE
A significant portion of the daily choline requirement can be met by the endogenous
conversion of phosphatidylethanolamine to phosphatidylcholine by the liver enzyme
phosphacidylethanolarnine N-methyltransferase (PEMT). Because choline can be
synthesized de novo and is abundant in food, choline deficiency is very rare. Hepatic
complications (fatty livers and elevated serum alanine aminotransferase) that respond
to choline supplementation have been observed in patients on total parenteral nutrition
solutions devoid of choline, with small intestinal bypass, and with liver cirrhosis.
Choline is critical during fetal development because it affects DNA methylation, which
influences neural cell precursor cell proliferation and apoptosis.
Fortunately, PEMT expression is increased several fold during pregnancy.
 CARNITINE

Carnitine is required for transport of fatty acids across the mitochondrial membrane, so it is essential
for normal fatty acid metabolism. In muscle an enzyme called carnitine acyltransferase uses carnitine to
convert acetyl CoA to acerylcarnitine, releasing free coenzyme A in the process. This is important
because the supply of mitochondrial
coenzyme A is very limited and aceryl CoA synthesis by pyruvate dehydrogenase during high intensity
exercise is much more rapid than the citric acid cycle can utilize. Thus, in exercising muscle, carnitine is
essential for both fatty acid and carbohydrate metabolism .

Because carnitine can be synthesized de novo, it is nonessential for normal healthy adults. However, it
is considered conditionally essential overall because human genetic disorders of carnitine metabolism
have been described and some of them respond to carnitine supplementation. Carnitine is a popular
dietary supplement for athletes. However, for supplemental carnitine to have any effect on muscle
carnitine levels it must be administered along with sufficient carbohydrate to significantly increase
serum insulin levels.
 MINERALS
Calcium
Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body. Most is in bone, but the small
amount of Ca 2+ outside of bone functions in a variety of essential processes.
• It is required for many enzymes;
• it mediates some hormonal responses;
• it is essential for blood coagulation;
• it is essential for muscle contractility;
• it is highly important for normal neuromuscular irritability;

Symptoms of Ca2+ deficiency resemble those of vitamin D deficiency, but other

symptoms such as muscle cramps are possible with marginal deficiencies.
 MINERALS
Magnesium
Magnesium is required for many enzyme activities, particularly those utilizing an
ATP Mg2+ complex, and for neuromuscular transmission.
Deficiency occurs in alcoholism, with use of certain diuretics and in metabolic
acidosis. The main symptoms of Mg2+ deficiency are weakness, tremors, and
cardiac arrhythmia.
Supplemental Mg2+ may help prevent formation of calcium oxalate stones in the
kidney; to lower blood pressure; decrease the risk of stroke.
STRUCTURE OF ATP AND ADP COMPLEXED
WITH Mg2+

ATP +H2O ADP +Pi

4- 3- 2- +
ATP +H2O ADP + HPO4 +H
 TRACE MINARALS: IRON

When iron levels are low the certain

effects combine to increase the uptake,
decrease sequestration, and increase
export of iron by intestinal mucosal cells.
ln contrast, when iron levels are high, the
certain effects combine to decrease export
of iron by intestinal mucosal cells and to
increase retention of iron stores by the
liver.
Iron is sequestered and transported
through the bloodstream by transferrin.
Transferrin levels are increased under
conditions of iron deficiency and
decreased under conditions of iron
excess
Expression of TfR1 is increased
under conditions of iron
deficiency and decreased under
conditions of iron excess
The best-known symptom of iron deficiency is a microcytic
hypochromic anemia. Iron deficiency is also associated with decreased
immunocompetence.
Excess iron can lead to the rare condition hemochromatosis in which
iron deposits are found in abnormally high levels in many tissues and
cause liver, pancreatic, and cardiac dysfunction as well as pigmentation
of the skin.
 TRACE MINERALS
IODINE
Dietary iodine is efficiently absorbed and transported to the thyroid gland, where it is
scored and used for synthesis of triiodothyronine and thyroxine. These hormones
unction in regulating the basal metabolic rate of adults and the growth and
development of children. Adequate maternal thyroid levels are particularly important for
fetal brain development.

Saltwater fish are the best natural food sources of iodine, and in the past population
groups living in inland areas suffered from the endemic deficiency disease goiter, an
enlargement (sometimes massive) of the thyroid gland.
Since iodine has been routinely added to table salt, goiter has become relatively rare.
 TRACE MINERALS
ZINC
Zinc is part of the catalytic center of over 300 metalloenzymes, including RNA and
DNA polymerases, alkaline phosphatase, and carbonic anhydrase. It forms zinc
fingers (Zn2+ coordinated to four amino acid side chains), which provide structural
stability to 300-700 proteins involve in gene expression. Zinc is involved in iron
homeostasis. Zinc is tightly bound to cysteine residues in metallothioneins and is
linked to the redox state of the cell.

Finally, relatively large amounts of loosely bound zinc are also found in vesicular
structures including synaptic vesicles of nerve terminals of the islets of Langerhans,
suggesting that zinc plays a much broader physiological role than might be
suggested by its presence in zinc metalloproteins.
 TRACE MINERALS
ZINC
Zinc is present in gustin, a salivary polypeptide that appears to be necessary for
normal development of taste buds, so zinc deficiency leads to decreased taste
acuity. Zinc is required for cytokine production by monocytes and T-cells. Thus, zinc
deficiency is associated with impaired immune function. Zinc is required for the
activity of porphobilinogen synthase. In lead poisoning, lead replaces the zinc, which
leads to anemia and accumulation of -y-arninolevulinic acid.
 TRACE MINERALS
COPPER
Important copper-containing enzymes include:

• Ceruloplasmin and hephaestin;

• Cytochrome c oxidase;
• Dopamine hydroxylase;
• Lysyl oxidase (collagen cross-linking);
• Superoxide dismutase;
• Tyrosinase;
• Peptidylglycine amidating monoxygenase (neurotransmitter metabolism);
• Desaturase;

Symptoms of copper deficiency include anemia, hypercholesterolemia, demineralization of bones,

leukopenia, fragility of large arteries, and demyelination of neural tissue. Anemia may reflect the
reduced ceruloplasmin and hephaestin activity. Bone demineralization and blood vessel fragility can
be directly traced to defects in collagen and elastin formation. Hypercholesterolemia may be related
to an increase in the ratio of unsaturated/saturated fatty acid.
 TRACE MINERALS
Chromium
Chromium is a component of the low-molecular-weight protein chromodulin ,
which potentiates the effects of insulin by facilitating insulin binding to its
receptor and receptor kinase signaling.
The chief symptom of chromium deficiency is impaired glucose tolerance,
a result of decreased insulin effectiveness. Chromium deficiency appears to
be rare in healthy adults. However, diabetes causes increased urinary loss of
chromium, which can lead to chromium deficiency over time.
Supplementation with chromium appears to improve glycemic control in
patients with type 2 diabetes.
 TRACE MINERALS, Selenium
Selenium is incorporated into approximately 25 selenoproteins in humans
including:
• glutathione peroxidase,
• phospholipid-hydroperoxide (Phospholipid-hydroperoxide glutathione
peroxidase catalyzes reductive destruction of phospholipid and cholesterol ester
hydroperoxides in oxidized low-density lipoproteins),
• thioredoxin reductase (conversion of thyroxine (T 4) to the active thyroid
hormone triiodothyronine (T3),
• Iodothyronine deiodinase,
• selenoprotein P,
• sperm capsule selenoprotein GPx4 (important for sperm motility),
• muscle selenoprotein W. (appears to be essential for muscle metabolism)

Selenium levels are very low in the soil in certain geographical regions. Clinical
studies suggest that supplementation with selenium may reduce the risk of
lung, breast, and bladder cancers.
 TRACE MINERALS
Magnesium, Molybdenum, Fluoride, Boron
Manganese is a component of
arginase,
glutamine synthetase,
superoxide dismutase,
phosphoenolpyruvate decarboxylase

Molybdenum is present in
Xanctine oxidase

Fluoride strengthens bones and teeth and is usually added to drinking water.

Boron appears to be important role in bone formation, nerve function, and

immune response.
• Who Needs Supplements?
• People with nutritional deficiencies
• People with low energy intake – less than 1600 kcalories per day
• Vegans and those with atrophic gastritis need vitamin B12
• People with lactose intolerance, milk allergies, or inadequate intake of
dairy foods

• People in certain stages of the life cycle

• Infants need iron and fluoride
• Women of childbearing age need folate
• Pregnant women need folate and iron
• Elderly need vitamins B12 and D
• People with diseases, infections, or injuries, and those who have had
surgery that affects nutrient digestion, absorption or metabolism
• People taking medications that interfere with the body’s use of specific
nutrients