Endocrine Abstracts

Vitamin D has become an important player beyond bone and calcium metabolism. Receptors for 1,25(OH)2D3 or calcitriol as well as the machinery to produce 1,25(OH)2D3 locally are present all over the immune system. Regulation of the enzyme responsible for the final activation of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (CYP27B1) is however completely different in immune cells than in kidney cells. Particular immunomodulating effects of 1,25(OH)2<...

Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway is abnormally activated in most colorectal adenomas and tumours. Wnt factors are secreted glycoproteins that upon binding to their heterodimeric membrane receptors trigger a signal transduction pathway that leads to the accumulation of β-catenin in the cytosol and its nuclear translocation. Within the cell nucleus, β-catenin regulates a vast number of genes involved in cell proliferation and invasiveness via binding to members of...

Vitamin D is a pluripotent secosteroid whose actions extend far beyond classical effects on calcium homeostasis and bone metabolism. Vitamin D is known to exert powerful effects on both innate and adaptive immunity, with important consequences for both infectious and autoimmune diseases. Innate immune activities of vitamin D include the attenuation of antigen presentation by dendritic cells. However, recent attention has focused on the ability of vitamin D to stimulate antibac...

Vitamin D is one of the major factors involved in calcium and phosphate homeostasis via actions on intestine, kidney, parathyroid gland, and bone. In addition, vitamin D has effects on various cells and tissues not primarily related to calcium, phosphate and bone metabolism, including the immunesystem, brain, and various cancer cells. Vitamin D deficiency is linked to incidence and progress of various diseases. Currently there is an increase in discussion on the question about...