Therapeutic use of vitamin D and its analogues in autoimmunity.

Abstract

In recent years, there has been great interest in the role of vitamin D in a number of diverse human diseases including autoimmunity, allergy, infection, cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease, transplantation and cancer. Vitamin D is best known for its role in calcium metabolism; however it also has potent immunomodulatory effects. Epidemiological studies suggest that vitamin D deficiency may be a significant risk factor for many diseases. Furthermore, there is accumulating evidence from experimental studies that vitamin D has anti-inflammatory effects. Recent studies have indicated that a surprisingly high proportion of people are vitamin D deficient, suggesting that vitamin D supplementation may be of benefit to human health. This review will focus on the role of vitamin D in autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes. We will review the epidemiological and experimental evidence for the protective effects of vitamin D in autoimmunity, as well as the preliminary vitamin D intervention studies and the most recent patented vitamin D analogues.

• Authors: Jean M Fletcher, Sharee A Basdeo, Aideen C Allen, Padraic J Dunne
• Journal: Recent patents on inflammation & allergy drug discovery (Recent Pat Inflamm Allergy Drug Discov) Vol. 6 Issue 1 Pg. 22-34 (Jan 2012) ISSN: 1872-213X [Print] United Arab Emirates
• PMID: 22122009 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Review)

Chemical References

• Vitamins
• Vitamin D

Topics

• Animals
• Arthritis, Rheumatoid (drug therapy, immunology, physiopathology)
• Autoimmune Diseases (drug therapy, immunology, physiopathology)
• Diabetes Mellitus (drug therapy, immunology, physiopathology)
• Humans
• Multiple Sclerosis (drug therapy, immunology, physiopathology)
• Patents as Topic
• Risk Factors
• Vitamin D (analogs & derivatives, pharmacology, therapeutic use)
• Vitamin D Deficiency (drug therapy, immunology)
• Vitamins (pharmacology, therapeutic use)