Vitamin D is precursor of the steroid hormone calcitriol and has important functions throughout the body, including increasing intestinal absorption of calcium, magnesium and phosphate. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked with a range of disorders, including several bone diseases. However, large trials of vitamin D supplementation have produced mixed results. Here, experts from around the world discuss several key questions in the vitamin D research and clinical fields.
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Authors and Affiliations
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Andrea Giustina. A.G. is Professor of Endocrinology and Metabolism at San Raffaele Vita-Salute University and Head of Endocrinology at IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital in Milano, Italy, where he is the Director of the Postgraduate Program in Endocrinology and of the Bone Center. He is past president of the European Society of Endocrinology and of the Pituitary Society.
Marise Lazaretti-Castro. M.L.-C. is Associate Professor of Endocrinology at Federal University of Sao Paulo (UNIFESP), Brazil, where she heads the Bone and Mineral Research Unit. In her career as a graduate adviser, she has trained more than 20 doctors and 30 Masters students, and has co-authored >200 journal articles and book chapters and lectured extensively in her area of expertise. M.L.-C. is a former President of the Brazilian Society for Bone Assessment, Osteoporosis and Osteometabolism, and is a member of Ex-Officio RAC Board of the International Osteoporosis Foundation.
Adrian R. Martineau. A.R.M. is Clinical Professor of Respiratory Infection and Immunity at Queen Mary University of London, UK. He leads a programme of laboratory research, clinical trials and meta-analysis characterizing effects of vitamin D on immune function and human health, with a focus on prevention and treatment of respiratory infections.
Rebecca S. Mason. R.S.M. is a medical doctor and scientist at the University of Sydney, Australia, with career awards for vitamin D and bone and mineral research. She contributed to Australasian position statements on vitamin D and to national guidelines on vitamin D testing and on the risks and benefits of sunlight exposure.
Clifford J. Rosen. C.J.R. is a board-certified endocrinologist and bone biologist. He received his MD at SUNY Syracuse, NY, USA, residency at UMass Medical Center Affiliated Hospitals, MA, USA, and fellowship at Dartmouth Medical Center, NH, USA. He has authored nearly 400 peer-reviewed papers and oversees a translational laboratory at Maine Medical Center Research Institute, ME, USA, that is continuously supported by four NIH grants. He is past president of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research and is an associate editor of New England Journal of Medicine.
Inez Schoenmakers. I.S. is an Associate Professor at the Medical School, University of East Anglia, UK. Her research is focused on the investigation of calcium, phosphate and vitamin D metabolism, particularly in relation to bone health and how this is influenced by ageing, kidney function, nutrition and ethnicity. Her work contributed to recommendations on vitamin D requirements and safety for population health and patient management. These included guidelines formulated by the UK Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, the European Food Safety Authority, the Royal Osteoporosis Society and the WHO review of evidence for recommendations for the prevention of nutritional rickets.
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Competing interests
A.G. is a consultant for Abiogen, Ipsen, Pfizer, Recordati and Takeda, and is a recipient of research grants (to his institution) from Pfizer and Takeda. A.R.M. declares receipt of funding in the last 36 months to support vitamin D research from the following companies which manufacture or sell vitamin D supplements: Pharma Nord Ltd, DSM Nutritional Products Ltd, Thornton & Ross Ltd and Hyphens Pharma Ltd. A.R.M. also declares receipt of vitamin D capsules for clinical trial use from Pharma Nord Ltd, Synergy Biologics Ltd and Cytoplan Ltd; support for attending meetings from Pharma Nord Ltd and Abiogen Pharma Ltd; receipt of consultancy fees from DSM Nutritional Products Ltd and Qiagen Ltd; and receipt of a speaker fee from the Linus Pauling Institute. A.R.M. declares participation on Data and Safety Monitoring Boards for the VITALITY trial (Vitamin D for Adolescents with HIV to Reduce Musculoskeletal Morbidity and Immunopathology, Pan African Clinical Trials Registry ref PACTR20200989766029) and the Trial of Vitamin D and Zinc Supplementation for Improving Treatment Outcomes Among COVID-19 Patients in India (ClinicalTrials.gov ref NCT04641195); and unpaid work as a Programme Committee member for the Vitamin D Workshop. R.S.M. has received speaker fees from Sanofi Australia. M.L.-C., C.J.R. and I.S. declare no competing interests.
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Giustina, A., Lazaretti-Castro, M., Martineau, A.R. et al. A view on vitamin D: a pleiotropic factor?. Nat Rev Endocrinol 20, 202–208 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-023-00942-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-023-00942-0
