Open AccessThe Relationship Between Vitamin D and Infections Including COVID-19: Any Hopes?
Author(s) -
Rbab Taha,
Shahd Abureesh,
Shuruq Alghamdi,
Rosline Hassan,
Mohamed Cheikh,
Rania Abubaker Bagabir,
Hani Almoallim,
Altaf A. Abdulkhaliq
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
international journal of general medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.722
H-Index - 36
ISSN - 1178-7074
DOI - 10.2147/ijgm.s317421
Subject(s) - medicine , vitamin d and neurology , immune system , pandemic , immunology , disease , vitamin d deficiency , coronavirus , tuberculosis , inflammation , infectious disease (medical specialty) , intensive care medicine , covid-19 , pathology
Vitamin D is proposed to have a potential role in the pathogenicity, clinical presentation, prognosis, complications, and treatment of several diseases. In addition to its well-known role in calcium metabolism, vitamin D regulates both innate and adaptive immunity, and subsequently modulates the antiviral and antibacterial inflammatory immune responses. In view of the emerging coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, searching for potential therapeutic and protective strategies is of urgent interest, and vitamin D is one of the promising agents in this field. In this review, we present data from literature that supports the promising role of vitamin D in treatment and/or prevention of several infections including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This review summarizes vitamin D metabolism and its role in inflammation, thrombosis and immune regulation. It also reviews, in short, the role of vitamin D and the impact of its deficiency in several infections namely tuberculosis, influenza, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and SARS-CoV-2. Considering the roles of vitamin D on immune modulation, controlling of thrombosis, and attacking several microorganisms, the current review will elaborate on the association between these salient roles of vitamin D and the pathogenicity of various infectious agents including COVID-19. Consequently, the comprehensive finding of the current review shows a possible significant impact of vitamin D supplement as a hope in preventing, treating, and/or improving the progression of certain infections, specifically during the worldwide attempts to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and minimize the severity of health complications encountered accordingly. In addition, avoiding a status of vitamin D deficiency to obtain its positive effects on the immune system and its protective mechanism during infections will be a general benefit overall.