Evaluation of the polymorphisms in methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene and the levels of folate and B12 in HIV-infected patients under antiretroviral therapy

In this study we sought to investigate the B12 and folate levels regarding the influence of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase genotypes, immunological profile and antiretroviral therapy in the Brazilian HIV-infected population. The study group comprised 89 HIV-infected individuals and 29 blood donors. There was a decrease in the B12 levels in the HIV-infected group with higher TCD4+ lymphocyte counts. No differences in the genotype distribution for methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase polymorphisms between the HIV-infected individuals and the controls were found. HIV-infected individuals carrying the C677C genotype presented lower B12 levels (313.91 +/- 154.05) than those with the same genotype in the control group (408.27 +/- 207.69). Also, the antiretroviral therapy was not a source of variation of the folate and B12 serum levels. Further studies are needed to reanalyze the prevalence of low levels of folate and B12 and hyperhomocysteinemia among HIV-infected patients with regard to the use of HAART and the increased life expectancy of such patients.