CHAPTER 11: The Chemistry of Folate

Folate is one of the water-soluble B vitamins naturally present in foods. Folate is a generic term used to designate a family of pteroylglutamates. Each member has a different level of pteridine ring reduction, one-carbon [methyl (CH₃-), formyl (CHO-), methylene (CH₂=), methyl (CH₃-)] substitution and number of glutamate residues (1-11 residues). Folic acid refers to the oxidized, stable and easily absorbable synthetic form of folate. ‘Folic acid’ and ‘folate’ are the preferred synonyms for pteroylglutamic acid (PteGlu) and pteroylglutamate, respectively. This chapter briefly reviews the chemistry and the biochemistry of folate.