Only when it's allowed to accumulate does it start trouble. If things are going as they're supposed to, homocysteine is converted to glutathione , a natural antioxidant, or back to methionine. If not converted, homocysteine can inhibit methylation. Elevated homocysteine causes lipid peroxidation and sticky platelets, both of which are associated with oxidation. It has been recently discovered that pigs with elevated homocysteine have abnormally high iron levels in heart muscle.
Iron promotes free radical formation.
Free radicals are not all bad. The body generates them for certain things. Surprising new research shows that homocysteine may help the immune system create the free radicals it uses to fight off invaders. There is some evidence that oxidative stress may impede methylation, and anything that reduces oxidative stress may enhance methylation. Researchers in Italy found that free radicals greatly reduce the synthesis of proteins, including lipoproteins.