Editorial: Immune-Modulatory Effects of Vitamin D
Susu M. Zughaier, Erik Lubberts, Abdülbari Bener
Abstract
Vitamin D plays an essential role in bone development. However, recent studies are beginning to uncover its role as a modulator of the immune system [1]. Several reports have shown associations between vitamin D deficiency [2] and the incidence as well as the severity of chronic inflammatory diseases such as cardiovascular disease [3; 4], inflammatory bowel disease [5], asthma [6] and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) [7]. Consistent with this, vitamin D supplementations have been shown to reduce the severity of and inflammation markers in chronic inflammatory diseases [8]. At the molecular level, the hormonally active form of vitamin D (α1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D3) regulates the expression of vitamin D responsive genes that can lead to differential regulation of signaling pathways in immune cells. For example, vitamin D positively regulates iron homeostasis and erythropoiesis via the iron-hepcidin-ferroportin axis [9]. Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent world-wide including countries with abundance of sunshine [10].