Vitamin D Boosts Immunity

New Evidence Vitamin D

Boosts Immune Response

Laboratory-grown gingival cells treated with vitamin D boosted their production of an endogenous antibiotic, and killed more bacteria than untreated cells, according to a report in the June 2011 issue of the journal Infection and Immunity.

The research suggests that vitamin D can help protect the gums from bacterial infections that lead to gingivitis and periodontitis. Periodontitis impacts up to 50 percent of the US population, is a major cause of tooth loss, and can also contribute to heart disease. Most Americans are deficient in vitamin D.

Another laboratory's discovery demonstrated that vitamin D could stimulate white blood cells to produce natural proteins that have antibiotic activity.

Researchers from New Jersey Dental School, Newark, showed that vitamin D could stimulate lung cells to produce LL-37, a natural antibiotic protein, and kill more bacteria. That suggested that , vitamin D might help cystic fibrosis patients. In the new research, they showed that vitamin D has the same effect
on gingival cells.

They also found that vitamin D also stimulates gingival cells to produce another protein, called TREM-1, which had not been well-studied, but which was thought to be made by white blood cells. He found that it boosts production of pro-inflammatory cytokines.

The new research also showed that vitamin D coordinates expression of a number of genes not previously considered to be part of the vitamin D pathway. Those genes may be involved in additional infection-fighting pathways. A more comprehensive understanding of how vitamin D carries out this regulation at the molecular level, a theory to be investigated further, and also will enable targeted therapies using vitamin D.

They found that lung and gum cells appear to have the ability to activate inactive forms of vitamin D. In addition to infectious diseases, studies suggest that it has protective effects against autoimmune diseases, and certain cancers.

Interestingly, after they began conducting research on vitamin D, they began taking it as a supplement. Since then, "I have had only one cold in four years, and that one lasted only three days," one of the scientists said. "Other people I've met who have done the same have seen similar results. We are trying to figure out how it's working, and what other infectious diseases can be mitigated by it."

Story Source:
American Society for Microbiology
Journal Reference:Vitamin D-Mediated Induction of Innate Immunity in Gingival Epithelial Cells. Infection and Immunity, 2011;