Premium
Vitamin D and Its Role in Cancer and Immunity: A Prescription for Sunlight
Author(s) -
Mullin Gerard E.,
Dobs Adrian
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
nutrition in clinical practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.725
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1941-2452
pISSN - 0884-5336
DOI - 10.1177/0115426507022003305
Subject(s) - vitamin d and neurology , medicine , calcitriol receptor , immune system , vitamin , cancer , immunity , vitamin d deficiency , immunology , physiology , endocrinology
Vitamin D has been recognized for more than a century as essential for the normal development and mineralization of a healthy skeleton. More extensive roles for vitamin D were suggested by the discovery of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) in tissues that are not involved in calcium and phosphate metabolism. VDR has been discovered in most tissues and cells in the body and is able to elicit a wide variety of biologic responses. These observations have been the impetus for a reevaluation of the physiologic and pharmacologic actions of vitamin D. Here, we review the role of vitamin D in regulation of the immune system and its possible role in the prevention and treatment of cancer and immune‐mediated diseases.