Martha Field<\/a>, Ph.D. \u201907, associate professor in the Division of Nutritional Sciences and in the College of Human Ecology. \u201cIt\u2019s highly relevant because muscles have high energy demands. More importantly, my co-author, Anna Thalacker-Mercer from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, wondered if\u00a0B12 supplementation in aged mice would improve muscle mitochondrial function \u2013 and it did.\u201d<\/p>\nUp until now, most research has focused on B12 deficiency and the resulting clinical syndromes \u2013 megaloblastic anemia, neuropathy and cognitive decline \u2013 rather than its deeper mechanistic roles.<\/p>\n
At Cornell, a team including Field and two of her former lab members, first authors Luisa\u00a0Castillo, Ph.D. \u201925, and Katarina\u00a0Heyden, B.S. ’18, Ph.D. \u201924,\u00a0set out to probe those mechanisms, mapping how B12 interacts with lipid metabolism, organelle stress pathways and epigenetic regulation. What emerged was startling: The vitamin appears to act as a gatekeeper of multiple \u201chub\u201d pathways, meaning that its insufficiency may ripple far beyond the classic symptoms.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother thing we observed in mice is that B12 deficiency seemed to inhibit growth or maintenance of muscle mass,\u201d Field said. \u201cIt seems that low B12 status is associated with lower muscle mass and maybe muscle strength.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
B12 deficiency remains common worldwide, especially among older adults and in low-income settings where meat consumption (a major B12 source) is limited. According to one estimate, one in four older adults in developed countries may show suboptimal B12 status. This new insight underscores the urgency of screening and intervention.<\/p>\n
This work also intersects with a growing body of evidence that micronutrient insufficiency \u2013 not complete deficiency \u2013 contributes significantly to chronic disease. Global public-health data indicate that while many developed countries see little outright B12 deficiency, suboptimal status remains widespread in older adults and among vegans, vegetarians or individuals with malabsorption. The study suggests that even \u201cmarginal\u201d B12 status may compromise resilience to metabolic stress, immune challenge and accelerated aging.<\/p>\n
From a clinical-science perspective, the authors propose that B12-based biomarkers could inform more personalized nutrition strategies. Instead of one-size-fits-all supplement guidelines, future nutrition guidance might tailor B12 intake to individual metabolic and lifestyle profiles \u2014 a shift toward precision nutrition. Such an approach aligns with the broader vision of integrating nutrient science with systems biology.<\/p>\n
The findings are based on cell models and require confirmation in humans, Field said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to understand the whole causal pathway \u2013 understanding the molecules and mechanisms,\u201d Field said. \u201cThis sets the stage for a future controlled human trial.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Vitamin B12 is long understood as a vital nutrient required for red blood cell formation and nerve function,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":255045,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[103,61,60,446],"class_list":{"0":"post-255044","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-ie","10":"tag-ireland","11":"tag-nutrition"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255044","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=255044"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255044\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/255045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=255044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=255044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=255044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}