Abstract
The environment in which the encounter of antigen with the immune system occurs determines whether tolerance, infectious immunity, or autoimmunity results. Geographical areas with low supplies of vitamin D (for example Scandinavia) correlate with regions with high incidences of multiple sclerosis, arthritis, and diabetes. The active form of vitamin D has been shown to suppress the development of autoimmunity in experimental animal models. Furthermore, vitamin D deficiency increases the severity of at least experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (mouse multiple sclerosis). Targets for vitamin D in the immune system have been identified, and the mechanisms of vitamin D-mediated immunoregulation are beginning to be understood. This review discusses the possibility that vitamin D status is an environmental factor, which by shaping the immune system affects the prevalence rate for autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, arthritis, and juvenile diabetes.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 230-233 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine |
Volume | 223 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 2000 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)