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Raw eggs should be avoided in those with biotin deficiency, because egg whites contain high levels of the anti-nutrient avidin. The name avidin literally means that this protein has an "avidity" (Latin: "to eagerly long for") for biotin. Avidin binds irreversibly to biotin and this compound is then excreted in the urine.
Based on the results of worldwide screening of biotinidase deficiency in 1991, the incidence of the disorder is:
5 in 137,401 for profound biotinidase deficiency
- One in 109,921 for partial biotinidase deficiency
- One in 61,067 for the combined incidence of profound and partial biotinidase deficiency
- Carrier frequency in the general population is approximately one in 120.
Symptoms can be reduced through avoidance of leucine, an amino acid. Leucine is a component of most protein-rich foods; therefore, a low-protein diet is recommended. Some isolated cases of this disorder have responded to supplemental biotin; this is not altogether surprising, consider that other biotin-related genetic disorders (such as biotinidase deficiency and holocarboxylase synthetase deficiency) can be treated solely with biotin. Individuals with these multiple carboxylase disorders have the same problem with leucine catabolism as those with 3-methylcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase deficiency.
Since biotin is in many foods at low concentrations, deficiency is rare except in locations where malnourishment is very common. Pregnancy, however, alters biotin catabolism and despite a regular biotin intake, half of the pregnant women in the U.S. are marginally biotin deficient.
In the United States, biotin supplements are readily available without a prescription in amounts ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 micrograms (30 micrograms is identified as Adequate Intake).
Treatment of THB deficiencies consists of THB supplementation (2–20 mg/kg per day) or diet to control blood phenylalanine concentration and replacement therapy with neurotransmitters precursors (L-DOPA and 5-HTP) and supplements of folinic acid in DHPR deficiency.
Tetrahydrobiopterin is available as a tablet for oral administration in the form of "tetrahydrobiopterin dihydrochloride" (BH4*2HCL). BH4*2HCL is FDA approved under the trade name Kuvan. The typical cost of treating a patient with Kuvan is $100,000 per year. BioMarin holds the patent for Kuvan until at least 2024, but Par Pharmaceutical has a right to produce a generic version by 2020. BH4*2HCL is indicated at least in tetrahydrobiopterin deficiency caused by GTPCH deficiency or PTPS deficiency.
In terms of treatment for short-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency, some individuals may not need treatment, while others might follow administration of:
- Riboflavin
- Dextrose
- Anticonvulsants
The treatment goal for individuals affected with OTC deficiency is the avoidance of hyperammonemia. This can be accomplished through a strictly controlled low-protein diet, as well as preventative treatment with nitrogen scavenging agents such as sodium benzoate. The goal is to minimize the nitrogen intake while allowing waste nitrogen to be excreted by alternate pathways. Arginine is typically supplemented as well, in an effort to improve the overall function of the urea cycle. If a hyperammonemic episode occurs, the aim of treatment is to reduce the individual's ammonia levels as soon as possible. In extreme cases, this can involve hemodialysis.
Gene therapy had been considered a possibility for curative treatment for OTC deficiency, and clinical trials were taking place at the University of Pennsylvania in the late 1990s. These were halted after the death of Jesse Gelsinger, a young man taking part in a phase I trial using an adenovirus vector. Currently, the only option for curing OTC deficiency is a liver transplant, which restores normal enzyme activity. A 2005 review of 51 patients with OTC deficiency who underwent liver transplant estimated 5-year survival rates of greater than 90%. Severe cases of OTC deficiency are typically evaluated for liver transplant by 6 months of age.
At this time there is no treatment for transaldolase deficiency.
There is currently research being done to find treatments for transaldolase deficiency. A study done in 2009 used orally administered N-acetylcysteine on transaldolase deficient mice and it prevented the symptoms associated with the disease. N-acetylcysteine is a precursor for reduced glutathione, which is decreased in transaldolase deficient patients.
Carnitor - an L-carnitine supplement that has shown to improve the body's metabolism in individuals with low L-carnitine levels. It is only useful for Specific fatty-acid metabolism disease.
This disorder, epidemiologically speaking, is thought to affect approximately 1 in 50,000 newborns according to Jethva, et al. While in the U.S. state of California there seems to be a ratio of 1 in 35,000.
The primary treatment method for fatty-acid metabolism disorders is dietary modification. It is essential that the blood-glucose levels remain at adequate levels to prevent the body from moving fat to the liver for energy. This involves snacking on low-fat, high-carbohydrate nutrients every 2–6 hours. However, some adults and children can sleep for 8–10 hours through the night without snacking.
The life expectancy of patients with homocystinuria is reduced only if untreated. It is known that before the age of 30, almost one quarter of patients die as a result of thrombotic complications (e.g., heart attack).
Low-protein food is recommended for this disorder, which requires food products low in particular types of amino acids (e.g., methionine).
A 1999 retrospective study of 74 cases of neonatal onset found that 32 (43%) patients died during their first hyperammonemic episode. Of those who survived, less than 20% survived to age 14. Few of these patients received liver transplants.
The signs and symptoms of holocarboxylase synthetase deficiency typically appear within the first few months of life, but the age of onset varies. Affected infants often have immunodeficiency diseases, difficulty feeding, breathing problems, a skin rash, hair loss (alopecia), and a lack of energy (lethargy). Immediate treatment and lifelong management (using biotin supplements) may prevent many of these complications. If left untreated, the disorder can lead to delayed development, seizures, and coma. These medical problems may be life-threatening in some cases.
The main treatments for CTLN1 include a low-protein, high-calorie diet with amino acid supplements, particularly arginine. The Ucyclyd protocol, using buphenyl and ammonul, is used for treatment as well. Hyperammonemia is treated with hemodialysis; intravenous arginine, sodium benzoate, and sodium phenylacetate. In some cases, liver transplantation may be a viable treatment. L-carnitine is used in some treatment protocols.
Management for mitochondrial trifunctional protein deficiency entails the following:
- Avoiding factors that might precipitate condition
- Glucose
- Low fat/high carbohydrate nutrition
It is one of the 29 conditions currently recommended for newborn screening by the American College of Medical Genetics.
Medications can interfere with folate utilization, including:
- anticonvulsant medications (such as phenytoin, primidone, carbamazepine or valproate )
- metformin (sometimes prescribed to control blood sugar in type 2 diabetes)
- methotrexate, an anti-cancer drug also used to control inflammation associated with Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and rheumatoid arthritis.
- sulfasalazine (used to control inflammation associated with Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and rheumatoid arthritis)
- triamterene (a diuretic)
- birth control pills
When methotrexate is prescribed, folic acid supplements are sometimes given with the methotrexate. The therapeutic effects of methotrexate are due to its inhibition of dihydrofolate reductase and thereby reduce the rate "de novo" purine and pyrimidine synthesis and cell division. Methotrexate inhibits cell division and is particularly toxic to fast dividing cells, such as rapidly dividing cancer cells and the progenitor cells of the immune system. Folate supplementation is beneficial in patients being treated with long-term, low-dose methotrexate for inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or psoriasis, to avoid macrocytic anemia caused by folate deficiency. Folate is often also supplemented before some high dose chemotherapy treatments in an effort to protect healthy tissue. However, it may be counterproductive to take a folic acid supplement with methotrexate in cancer treatment.
Individuals presenting with Type III galactosemia must consume a lactose- and galactose-restricted diet devoid of dairy products and mucilaginous plants. Dietary restriction is the only current treatment available for GALE deficiency. As glycoprotein and glycolipid metabolism generate endogenous galactose, however, Type III galactosemia may not be resolved solely through dietary restriction.
This condition is very rare; approximately 600 cases have been reported worldwide. In most parts of the world, only 1% to 2% of all infants with high phenylalanine levels have this disorder. In Taiwan, about 30% of newborns with elevated levels of phenylalanine have a deficiency of THB.
Folate is found in leafy green vegetables. Multi-vitamins also tend to include Folate as well as many other B vitamins. B vitamins, such as Folate, are water-soluble and excess is excreted in the urine.
When cooking, use of steaming, a food steamer, or a microwave oven can help keep more folate content in the cooked foods, thus helping to prevent folate deficiency.
Folate deficiency during human pregnancy has been associated with an increased risk of infant neural tube defects. Such deficiency during the first four weeks of gestation can result in structural and developmental problems. NIH guidelines recommend oral B vitamin supplements to decrease these risks near the time of conception and during the first month of pregnancy.
Holocarboxylase synthetase deficiency is an inherited metabolic disorder in which the body is unable to use the vitamin biotin effectively. This disorder is classified as a multiple carboxylase deficiency, a group of disorders characterized by impaired activity of certain enzymes that depend on biotin. Symptoms are very similar to biotinidase deficiency and treatment – large doses of biotin – is also the same.
Transaldolase deficiency is recognized as a rare inherited pleiotropic metabolic disorder first recognized and described in 2001 that is autosomal recessive. There have been only a few cases that have been noted, as of 2012 there have been 9 patients recognized with this disease and one fetus.