Methylation
Methylation is the behind-the-scenes regulator of detox, neurotransmitter production, and gene expression. Suboptimal activity is surprisingly common—and highly responsive to the right form of B-vitamins. If you've ever taken B-complex and felt nothing (or worse), this is probably why.
What this measures
How your DNA shapes methylation.
Methylation is your body’s most fundamental maintenance process — the addition of small methyl groups (-CH3) to proteins, DNA, and other molecules. It runs billions of times per day across every cell, regulating gene expression, repairing DNA, building neurotransmitters, clearing hormones, and detoxifying.
The genes that govern the methylation cycle (MTHFR, MTR, MTRR, BHMT, COMT, CBS) interact in ways that shift overall capacity. Carriers of multiple lower-activity variants tend to run "tight" on methyl-donor supply — the system works, but margin is narrow. Carriers of higher-activity variants in some genes and lower in others can produce mixed pictures that depend on which inputs are currently limiting.
Methyl donors come from folate, B12, choline, betaine, and (indirectly) protein. Alcohol depletes folate. Chronic stress drains COMT output. Heavy exercise increases methyl-donor demand. Each is a lever that moves the cycle’s effective output — and the right lever depends on which step of the cycle is constrained.
Methylation is the substrate underneath mood, energy, detox, hormones, and cardiovascular risk. Knowing where your cycle has margin and where it has friction is what turns generic "take B vitamins!" guidance into a real protocol.
Methylation is one specific finding in this system. Your Genomic Lifestyle Optimization Report shows where your variants place you on the detoxification pathways spectrum — and what you can do about it: it renders as a dark card with a color marker calibrated to your variants, opening with the gene mechanism and closing with a practical, mechanism-led recommendation.
Want to see what a real Mosaic dark card looks like? Walk through a sample report →
In context
Phase II: the 5-insight cluster.
Methylation is one finding in a tightly-related cluster. Mosaic sequences the other 4 alongside it so you see the whole biology — not an isolated data point.
Questions people ask
About Methylation.
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