The role of vitamin D in seasonal acute respiratory viral infections and COVID-19

A link between vitamin D deficiency and susceptibility to infectious diseases was suggested over a hundred years ago. Epidemiological studies show a strong association between seasonal fluctuations in vitamin D levels and the incidence of various infectious diseases, including septic shock, acute re...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: E. A. Pigarova, A. A. Povalyaeva, L. K. Dzeranova, L. Y. Rozhinskaya, N. G. Mokrysheva
Format: Article
Language:Russian
Published: "Consilium Medicum" Publishing house 2020-12-01
Series:Терапевтический архив
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Online Access:https://ter-arkhiv.ru/0040-3660/article/viewFile/56945/40135
Description
Summary:A link between vitamin D deficiency and susceptibility to infectious diseases was suggested over a hundred years ago. Epidemiological studies show a strong association between seasonal fluctuations in vitamin D levels and the incidence of various infectious diseases, including septic shock, acute respiratory infections, and influenza. Our understanding of vitamin D metabolism and its extra-skeletal functions has improved significantly over the past three decades, and the discovery that the vitamin D receptor and 1a-hydroxylase, an enzyme needed to convert vitamin D to its active form, is present in the cells of the immune system, revolutionized in this area. Recent studies have shown that vitamin D regulates the expression of specific endogenous antimicrobial peptides in immune cells, modulates the immune response and the course of autoimmune processes; these actions indicate the potential role of vitamin D in modulating the immune response to various infectious diseases. This publication reviews the literature on the effects of vitamin D on immunity, its potential in the prevention and treatment of viral diseases, with a particular focus on COVID-19.
ISSN:0040-3660
2309-5342