An experiment comprising 19 German Landrace sows was established to evaluat
e the effect of folic acid supplements (10mg/kg concentrate) on homocystein
e and folic acid concentration in plasma and serum, respectively, of highly
pregnant sows as compared to an unsupplemented control (basal diet contain
ed 0.62 mg folic acid/kg concentrate). Blood samples were taken between day
75 and 110 of gestation for homocysteine analysis and on day 100 of gestat
ion for folic acid determination. Due to the folic acid supplements serum f
olic acid concentration increased significantly (104 nmol/l in controls and
140 nmol/l in supplemented sows). In contrast, homocysteine concentration
in the plasma was not significantly influenced by folic acid supplements (1
6.5 mu mol/l in controls and 15.2 mu mol/l in supplemented sows). Further i
nvestigations seem to be necessary to clarify the physiology of homocystein
e metabolism in swine.