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Vitamin D and the heart

David G Gardner1, Songcang Chen, Denis J Glenn

  • 1Diabetes Center, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California; and.

American Journal of Physiology. Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology
|September 13, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Vitamin D receptors (VDR) are crucial for cardiovascular health, potentially preventing conditions like high blood pressure and atherosclerosis. Further research may unlock vitamin D

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Science
  • Endocrinology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Vitamin D receptors (VDR) are present in cardiovascular cells.
  • Liganded VDR may influence cardiac hypertrophy, fibrosis, blood pressure, and atherosclerosis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the role of VDR in cardiovascular health.
  • To evaluate the potential therapeutic use of vitamin D for cardiovascular disease.

Main Methods:

  • Review of experimental studies on VDR function in the cardiovascular system.
  • Analysis of observational human studies investigating vitamin D and cardiovascular outcomes.

Main Results:

  • Experimental data suggest VDR influences key cardiovascular processes.
  • Human observational studies offer mixed but supportive evidence for VDR's role.
  • Vitamin D's potential in cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment is suggested.

Conclusions:

  • VDR plays a significant role in cardiovascular system regulation.
  • Vitamin D and its analogs show promise as therapeutic agents for cardiovascular diseases.

Keywords:
heartvitamin D

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