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Fighting infections with vitamin D

Nature Medicine volume 12, pages 388–390 (2006)Cite this article

Sunlight can treat tuberculosis, a phenomenon observed more than a century ago. The mechanism now becomes more clear, and it involves induction of a microbe-fighting peptide by vitamin D.

In 1895, Niels Finsen of Denmark found an effective way to treat tuberculosis. He exposed individuals with tuberculosis of the skin—lupus vulgaris—to high-intensity light produced from an electric arc lamp. Exposing a small area of affected skin to intense light produced moderate sunburn. The superficial skin layers subsequently peeled away—leaving normal, healthy skin underneath. Phototherapy cured or substantially improved the disease in about 95% of affected people, and by the 1920s sun exposure for the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis had become routine.

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Figure 1: Fighting infections with vitamin D.

Katie Ris

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  1. Departments of Surgery and Pediatrics, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, 20007, DC, USA

    Michael Zasloff

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  1. Michael Zasloff
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Zasloff, M. Fighting infections with vitamin D. Nat Med 12, 388–390 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm0406-388

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