Prenatal folic acid and vitamin B12 imbalance alter neuronal morphology and synaptic density in the mouse neocortex

Abstract

Previous reports have provided evidence that insufficient or excessive maternal folic acid (FA) intake during pregnancy can alter neurodevelopment of the offspring by modulating prenatal neurogenesis. Furthermore, our earlier work in a mouse model confirmed long-term structural changes at the cellular level of either deficient or excessive FA supply by comparably reducing dendritic arborization of cortical projection neurons. Here, we report that excessive amounts of FA decrease arborization of deep layer projection neurons, but not upper layer neurons and that reduced complexity of deep layer neurons is not observed when folic acid is replaced by folinic acid, a stable reduced form of folate. In addition, deficiency of B₁₂, a vitamin that critically regulates folate metabolism, causes even more marked decreases in neuronal arborization in both deep and upper layer neurons and particularly in combination with FA excess. Furthermore, both FA excess and B₁₂ deficiency affect synaptic density and morphology. Our findings point to neurodevelopmental risks associated with insufficient amounts of prenatal B₁₂, particularly in association with high levels of FA intake, suggesting that the neurodevelopmental program is sensitive to an imbalance in the status of these interacting micronutrients.