Vitamin D thread -Please use this for your Vit D info.

[jordan11]

It is a better post and it is fantastic thing to look at and thanks for sharing.

[Jackie07]

R.B.

That UCTV link by Dr. Holick is wonderful. Thank you.

[R.B.]

If you found the Holick lecture above interesting you may also like this paper. It is a bit technical but if you ignore the bits that are complex you will get the gist that greater sun exposure may = lower risk of a range of cancers, that most if not all tissues use and can make the active form of vitamin D from the vitamin D precursor made by the action of sunlight in the skin, and that it appears that Vit D helps regulate cell division.



Vitamin D: Its role in cancer prevention and treatment
Michael F. Holick

Prog Biophys Mol Biol. 2006 Sep;92(1):49-59. Epub 2006 Mar 10.
Vitamin D: its role in cancer prevention and treatment.
Holick MF.
Source

Boston University Medical Center, 715 Albany Street, M-1013, Boston, MA 02118, USA. mfholick@bu.edu
Abstract

Vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, has been recognized for almost 100 years as being essential for bone health. Vitamin D provides an adequate amount of calcium and phosphorus for the normal development and mineralization of a healthy skeleton. Vitamin D made in the skin or ingested in the diet, however, is biologically inactive and requires obligate hydroxylations first in the liver to 25-hydroxyvitamin D, and then in the kidney to 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. 25-Hydroxyvitamin D is the major circulating form of vitamin D that is the best indicator of vitamin D status. 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D is the biologically active form of vitamin D. This lipid-soluble hormone interacts with its specific nuclear receptor in the intestine and bone to regulate calcium metabolism. It is now recognized that the vitamin D receptor is also present in most tissues and cells in the body. 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, by interacting with its receptor in non-calcemic tissues, is able to elicit a wide variety of biologic responses. 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D regulates cellular growth and influences the modulation of the immune system. There is compelling epidemiologic observations that suggest that living at higher latitudes is associated with increased risk of many common deadly cancers. Both prospective and retrospective studies help support the concept that it is vitamin D deficiency that is the driving force for increased risk of common cancers in people living at higher latitudes. Most tissues and cells not only have a vitamin D receptor, but also have the ability to make 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D. It has been suggested that increasing vitamin D intake or sun exposure increases circulating concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, which in turn, is metabolized to 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) in prostate, colon, breast, etc. The local cellular production of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D acts in an autocrine fashion to regulate cell growth and decrease the risk of the cells becoming malignant. Therefore, measurement of 25-hydroxyvitamin D is important not only to monitor vitamin D status for bone health, but also for cancer prevention.

[R.B.]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23237739

Is prevention of cancer by sun exposure more than just the effect of vitamin D? A systematic review of epidemiological studies.
van der Rhee H, Coebergh JW, de Vries E.
Source

Department of Dermatology, Hagaziekenhuis, P.O. Box 40551, Leyweg 275, 2504 LN Den Haag, Zuid-Holland, The Netherlands. Electronic address: hvdrhee@casema.nl.
Abstract

The number of studies reporting on the association between sunlight exposure, vitamin D and cancer risk is steadily increasing. We reviewed all published case-control and cohort studies concerning colorectal-, prostate-, breast cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) and both sunlight and vitamin D to update our previous review and to verify if the epidemiological evidence is in line with the hypothesis that the possible preventive effect of sunlight on cancer might be mediated not only by vitamin D but also by other pathways. We found that almost all epidemiological studies suggest that chronic (not intermittent) sun exposure is associated with a reduced risk of colorectal-, breast-, prostate cancer and NHL. In colorectal- and to a lesser degree in breast cancer vitamin D levels were found to be inversely associated with cancer risk. In prostate cancer and NHL, however, no associations were found. These findings are discussed and it is concluded that the evidence that sunlight is a protective factor for colorectal-, prostate-, breast cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is still accumulating. The same conclusion can be drawn concerning high vitamin D levels and the risk of colorectal cancer and possibly breast cancer. Particularly in prostate cancer and NHL other sunlight potentiated and vitamin D independent pathways, such as modulation of the immune system and the circadian rhythm, and the degradation of folic acid might play a role in reduced cancer risk as well.

[Hopeful]

Vitamin D and the mammary gland: a review on its role in normal development and breast cancer

http://breast-cancer-research.com/content/14/3/211

Hopeful

[R.B.]

Thanks Hopeful - great article (=:

Here is a study suggesting vitamin D may have a particular relevance in ER (estrogen receptor) based cancers.

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2407/10/483

Alterations in Vitamin D signalling and metabolic pathways in breast cancer progression: a study of VDR, CYP27B1 and CYP24A1 expression in benign and malignant breast lesions Vitamin D pathways unbalanced in breast lesions

Nair Lopes1, Bárbara Sousa1, Diana Martins1, Madalena Gomes1, Daniella Vieira2, Luiz A Veronese3, Fernanda Milanezi1, Joana Paredes1, José L Costa1 and Fernando Schmitt1,4*

Conclusions

From this study, we conclude that there is a deregulation of the Vitamin D signalling and metabolic pathways in breast cancer, favouring tumour progression. Thus, during mammary malignant transformation, tumour cells lose their ability to synthesize the active form of Vitamin D and respond to VDR-mediated Vitamin D effects, while increasing their ability to degrade this hormone.


Paragraph re ER cancers


Vitamin D receptor (VDR)

"An interesting finding is the correlation between the expression of the VDR and the ER in both in situ and invasive carcinomas. In fact, the VDR is expressed in most ER-positive cases (54.7% in in situ carcinomas and 65.5% in invasive tumours). It is thought that one of the VDR functions is to counteract oestrogen-mediated proliferation and maintain differentiation [12]. Indeed, data support the concept that the anti-tumour effects of Vitamin D and its analogues on ER-positive human breast cancer cells are mediated through the down regulation of the ER itself and the attenuation of oestrogen responses, such as breast cancer cell growth [29,30]. Thus, being the VDR mostly expressed in ER-positive carcinomas, Vitamin D or its analogues may become an alternative therapy for these tumours in cases of resistance to ER-targeted therapy. "

[R.B.]

A trial looking at a vitamin D analogue and HER2 cancers and showing positive outcomes.

Above it appears that vitamin D is relevant to estrogen positive cancers, and below an analogue shows promise in a estrogen negative HER2 positive cancer . . .

Sadly they do not report / nobody appears to have looked at natural Vitamin D and HER2, probably as usual because there is no money to be made, and if they did find it works effectively it would reduce any interest in analogues . . .


Situation 'Human condition' normal . . . )-:


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2906695/

Gemini Vitamin D Analog Suppresses ErbB2-Positive Mammary Tumor Growth via Inhibition of ErbB2/AKT/ERK Signaling
Hong Jin Lee,1 Jae-Young So,1 Andrew DeCastro,1 Amanda Smolarek,1 Shiby Paul,1 Hubert Maehr,1 Milan Uskokovic,1 and Nanjoo Suh1,2


Numerous synthetic vitamin D analogs have been studied for their effects on the prevention and treatment of breast cancer. However, the inhibitory effects of naturally occurring 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 or its synthetic analogs on ErbB2 overexpressing mammary tumorigenesis have not been reported. Gemini vitamin D analogs are novel synthetic vitamin D derivatives with a unique structure of two six-carbon chains at C-20. We have previously shown that Gemini vitamin D analogs significantly inhibited carcinogen-induced estrogen receptor (ER)-positive mammary tumorigenesis and reduced ER-negative MCF10DCIS.com xenograft tumor growth without hypercalcemic toxicity. In the present study, we have determined the inhibitory effect of a potent Gemini vitamin D analog BXL0124 (1α,25-dihydroxy-20R-21(3-hydroxy-3-deuteromethyl-4,4,4-trideuterobutyl)-23-yne-26,27-hexafluoro-cholecalciferol) on the ErbB2/Her-2/neu overexpressing mammary tumorigenesis. The Gemini BXL0124 inhibits ErbB2-positive mammary tumor growth and down-regulates the phosphorylation of ErbB2, ERK and AKT in tumors of MMTV-ErbB2/neu transgenic mice. These effects of Gemini BXL0124 in vivo were confirmed by using the ErbB2 overexpressing tumor cells derived from the mammary tumors of MMTV-ErbB2/neu mice. In conclusion, the Gemini vitamin D analog BXL0124 inhibits the growth of ErbB2 overexpressing mammary tumors through regulating the ErbB2/AKT/ERK signaling pathways, suggesting that Gemini vitamin D analog may be considered for translational studies.


And from the body of the text

"In conclusion, the Gemini vitamin D analog BXL0124 inhibits ER-negative/ErbB2 positive mammary tumorigenesis without hypercalcemic toxicity via regulating ErbB2/ErbB3-driven downstream signaling, ERK, AKT and cell cycle regulator, cyclin D1. Taken together with our previous study [10], Gemini vitamin D analogs, especially BXL0124, may be potent agents in the prevention of different types of human breast cancer without toxicity, and should be considered for translational studies."