title: Review: the role of vitamin D in nervous system health and disease.
abstract: Vitamin D and its metabolites have pleomorphic roles in both nervous system health and disease. Animal models have been paramount in contributing to our knowledge and understanding of the consequences of vitamin D deficiency on brain development and its implications for adult psychiatric and neurological diseases. The conflation of in vitro, ex vivo, and animal model data provide compelling evidence that vitamin D has a crucial role in proliferation, differentiation, neurotrophism, neuroprotection, neurotransmission, and neuroplasticity. Vitamin D exerts its biological function not only by influencing cellular processes directly, but also by influencing gene expression through vitamin D response elements. This review highlights the epidemiological, neuropathological, experimental and molecular genetic evidence implicating vitamin D as a candidate in influencing susceptibility to a number of psychiatric and neurological diseases. The strength of evidence varies for schizophrenia, autism, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, and is especially strong for multiple sclerosis.
authors: Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences (Clinical Neurology), University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. gabriele.deluca@ndcn.ox.ac.uk
authors: G C
authors: GC
authors: DeLuca
authors: S M
authors: SM
authors: Kimball
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Kolasinski
authors: S V
authors: SV
authors: Ramagopalan
authors: G C
authors: GC
authors: Ebers
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D009420:Nervous System / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000378:metabolism*; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D014807:Vitamin D
keywords: Parkinson's disease; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; autism; multiple sclerosis; schizophrenia; vitamin D