title: The Role of Vitamin D₃ in the Development and Neuroprotection of Midbrain Dopamine Neurons.
abstract: Vitamin D has long been synonymous with bone health. More recently, new health benefits are continually being associated with vitamin D, including a burgeoning field on neuroprotective properties. This has generated a huge explosion of interest in recent years in the potential for vitamin D to be used not only as a therapeutic in neurodegenerative disease, including Parkinson's disease, but also as biomarkers and for risk association. With an emphasis on Parkinson's disease, this chapter will discuss recent evidence supporting the assertion that vitamin D can be a useful therapeutic agent used as an intervention therapy to be combined with existing treatments; and the case for further development of novel treatments utilizing the potential of vitamin D. In addition, we present novel, previously unpublished evidence showing that in a unilateral model of Parkinson's disease, vitamin D can not only reduce the extent of denervation, but that this is also reflected in functional benefit to the animals. The potential of vitamin D is slowly being realized; in the future, it will be widely associated with far more than just bone health and may even contribute to an elusive treatment of neurodegenerative illness.
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine, Keele University, Keele, United Kingdom; Cardiff Institute of Infection and Immunity, School of Medicine, Cardiff, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Rowan P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Orme
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine, Keele University, Keele, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Charlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Middleditch
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine, Keele University, Keele, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Lauren
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Waite
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine, Keele University, Keele, United Kingdom. Electronic address: r.a.fricker@keele.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Rosemary A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Fricker
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002762:Cholecalciferol / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D059290:Dopaminergic Neurons / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008636:Mesencephalon / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; D002762:Cholecalciferol
keywords: Calcitriol; GDNF; Midbrain dopamine neurons; Neuroprotection; Parkinson's disease; Vitamin D(3)