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A new mechanism for induced vitamin D deficiency in calcium deprivation

Nature volume 325, pages 62–65 (1987)Cite this article

A Correction to this article was published on 19 April 1990

Abstract

Synthesis of vitamin D in the skin in response to ultraviolet light is the main determinant of vitamin D status in man1 and it is therefore surprising that rickets and osteomalacia, clinical signs of vitamin D deficiency, remain common in tropical and subtropical countries2. Skin pigmentation can reduce vitamin D formation3 but this is a negligible limitation in people exposed to abundant ultraviolet light4,5. Earlier studies in animals6 and man7 suggested that another environmental factor, the low calcium/high cereal diet typical of susceptible populations2, might affect the efficiency of vitamin D utilization. We show here in rats that the rate of inactivation of vitamin D in the liver is increased by calcium deprivation. The effect is mediated by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, produced in response to secondary hyperparathyroidism8,9, which promotes hepatic conversion of vitamin D to polar inactivation products that are excreted in bile. This finding has widespread implications both for understanding the pathogenesis of endemic rickets and in that it provides a unifying mechanism for the development of vitamin D deficiency in many clinical disorders.

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Author notes

  1. M. R. Clements

    Present address: University Department of Medicine, Royal Infirmary, Manchester, M13 9WL, UK

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dunn Nutritional Laboratory, University of Cambridge and Medical Research Council, Milton Road, Cambridge, CB4 1XJ, UK

    M. R. Clements, L. Johnson & D. R. Fraser

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  2. L. Johnson
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  3. D. R. Fraser
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Clements, M., Johnson, L. & Fraser, D. A new mechanism for induced vitamin D deficiency in calcium deprivation . Nature 325, 62–65 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1038/325062a0

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