title: Vitamin D deficiency diminishes the severity and delays onset of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.
abstract: Multiple sclerosis incidence is clearly inversely related to sun exposure. This observation led to the idea that vitamin D might be responsible for this relationship. Providing super-physiologic doses of the hormonal form of vitamin D, 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, suppresses an animal model of multiple sclerosis, i.e. experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) but causes unwanted hypercalcemia. Further, dietary calcium is needed for this activity of 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃. B10PL mice were maintained on a vitamin D-deficient diet for two generations to produce frank vitamin D deficiency. These animals showed delayed onset and reduced severity of EAE compared to control animals on the same diet and given vitamin D₃ or provided a vitamin D-containing chow diet. Thus, vitamin D deficiency interferes with the development of this autoimmune disease rather than increasing susceptibility.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 433 Babcock Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1544, USA. deluca@biochem.wisc.edu
authors.forename: Hector F
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: DeLuca
authors.forename: Lori A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Plum
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002117:Calcitriol / Q000008:administration & dosage; D002118:Calcium / Q000097:blood; D002136:Calcium, Dietary / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D007114:Immunization; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D004676:Myelin Basic Protein / Q000276:immunology; D011247:Pregnancy; D013997:Time Factors; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000276:immunology; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D002136:Calcium, Dietary; D004676:Myelin Basic Protein; D014807:Vitamin D; D002117:Calcitriol; D002118:Calcium