Question

With insufficient folate intake, immature ____________ cannot divide because they cannot form enough new ____________ for two new nuclei, and so the cells grow progressively larger.

Answer 1

Answer: i. red blood cells

ii. DNA

Explanation: The reduction of mature red blood cells which results from this decreases the capacity of the blood to carry oxygen; the cells therefore remain in a large immature form known as a megaloblast. As this occurs over time, it causes the folate deficiency condition called macrocytic anemia, or megaloblastic anemia.

There's another type of anemia that clinically looks like folate-related anemia due to the enlargement of red blood cells and this is called pernicious anemia. It occurs as a result of insufficient vitamin B-12 intake.