Title:Is There a Role of Vitamin D in Alzheimer’s Disease?
Volume: 23
Issue: 5
Author(s): Domenico Plantone*, Matteo Pardini, Stefano Caneva and Nicola De Stefano
Affiliation:
- Department of Medicine, Surgery and Neuroscience, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
Keywords:
Vitamin D, Alzheimer's disease, dementia, amyloid beta, cholecalciferol, cognition.
Abstract: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) represents the most prevalent type of neurodegenerative dementia
and the sixth leading cause of death worldwide. The so-called “non-calcemic actions” of vitamin D
have been increasingly described, and its insufficiency has already been linked to the onset and
progression of the main neurological diseases, including AD. Immune-mediated Aβ plaque’s phagocytosis
and clearance, immune response, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial function are all influenced
by vitamin D, and these functions are considered relevant in AD pathogenesis. However, it has been
shown that the genomic vitamin D signaling pathway is already impaired in the AD brain, making
things more complicated. In this paper, we aim to summarise the role of vitamin D in AD and review
the results of the supplementation trials in AD patients.