What enzyme breaks down vitamin B12?

pepsin
In food, vitamin B12 is attached to a protein that must be removed in the stomach by gastric acid and an enzyme called pepsin. Once B12 is free, a binding protein attaches to it and protects it while it’s transported to the small intestine.

How is vitamin B12 broken down in the body?

First, hydrochloric acid in the stomach separates vitamin B12 from the protein that it’s attached to. Second, the freed vitamin B12 then combines with a protein made by the stomach, called intrinsic factor, and the body absorbs them together.

Where is B12 broken down?

Vitamin B12 binds to the protein in the foods we eat. In the stomach, hydrochloric acid and enzymes unbind vitamin B12 into its free form. From there, vitamin B12 combines with a protein called intrinsic factor so that it can be absorbed further down in the small intestine.

Which B vitamins break down proteins?

The human body needs biotin for: breaking down fats, carbohydrates, and protein.

What are the biochemical functions of vitamin B12?

Vitamin B12 is an especially important vitamin for maintaining healthy nerve cells, and it helps in the production of DNA and RNA, the body’s genetic material. Vitamin B12 works closely with vitamin B9, also called folate or folic acid, to help make red blood cells and to help iron work better in the body.

What is B12 biochemistry?

Vitamin B12, also known as cobalamin, is a water-soluble vitamin involved in metabolism. It is one of eight B vitamins. It is required by animals, which use it as a cofactor in DNA synthesis, in both fatty acid and amino acid metabolism.

Which is secreted by cells is necessary for vitamin B12 absorption?

Intrinsic factor is a glycoprotein secreted by parietal (humans) or chief (rodents) cells of the gastric mucosa. In humans, it has an important role in the absorption of vitamin B12 (cobalamin) in the intestine, and failure to produce or utilize intrinsic factor results in the condition pernicious anemia.

Are all vitamin B coenzymes?

Most of the B vitamins have been recognized as coenzymes (substances that participate with enzymes in accelerating the interconversion of chemical compounds), and they all appear to be essential in facilitating the metabolic processes of all forms of animal life.

How are B vitamins metabolized?

Although dietary B vitamins are generally absorbed through the small intestine, bacterial B vitamins are produced and absorbed mainly through the colon (10, 11), indicating that dietary and gut microbiota-derived B vitamins are possibly handled differently by the human body.

Do Digestive enzymes help absorb B12?

However, our body’s ability to absorb it from these sources is only as good as our gut. In order to absorb dietary B12 in the small intestine, we need adequate stomach acid, the enzyme pepsin, and a gastric protein called intrinsic factor.