Vitamin D increases intestinal bacteria in mice and strengthens cancer immunity

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Vitamin D shows protective effect against new cancers study from Francis Crick Institute, National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Aalborg University, Denmark.

was announced on sciencea study found that the vitamin promoted the growth of a type of intestinal bacteria, which increased resistance to cancer in mice.

Vitamin D and the immune system

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is essential for maintaining healthy bones and regulating various physiological processes in the body.

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Vitamin D plays an important role immunomodulation, It regulates the expression of genes involved in immune response and enhances the function of immune cells. It also contributes to immune function by shaping the immune system. intestinal microbiota, Affects the composition and diversity of intestinal bacteria.

In cancer, data suggests vitamin D It can inhibit cancer cell proliferation, induce apoptosis, and suppress angiogenesis.

“We know that vitamin D deficiency can cause health problems, but there is not enough evidence linking vitamin D levels to cancer risk.” Said Dr.Nishanti DaganResearch Information Manager at Cancer Research UK.

In the study, mice were fed either a standard diet or a diet rich in vitamin D. Immune responses to ly transplanted cancers and responses to immunotherapy treatments were observed.

Mice fed a high-vitamin D diet had increased immune resistance to cancer and improved response to immunotherapy compared to controls. The same results were observed in gene-edited mice lacking a protein that binds vitamin D in the blood and moves it away from tissues.

Vitamin D acts on epithelial cells in the intestine, increasing the abundance of intestinal bacteria. Bacteroides fragilis (B. fragilis). Bacterial growth increased the cancer immune response and suppressed tumor growth in mice, but researchers have not yet determined the underlying mechanism for this finding.

Mice fed a standard diet were supplemented with B. fragilis to test whether the bacterium alone caused the cancer resistance effect. Tumor growth inhibition was also observed in this group, but the same effect was not seen when the mice were fed a vitamin D-deficient diet.

Studying the effects of vitamin D in humans

To investigate the effects of B. fragilis and vitamin D in humans, researchers analyzed the data. From 1.5 million people in Denmark. They found that low vitamin D levels are associated with increased risk of cancer. A second analysis looked at cancer patient populations and found that patients with higher vitamin D levels were more likely to respond positively to immune-based cancer treatments.

B. fragilis is also present in humans, but further studies are needed to show whether the cancer resistance effect also works by the same mechanism.

Vitamin D as a potential treatment option

“These findings contribute to the growing body of knowledge about the role of the microbiome in cancer immunity and the potential for dietary interventions to fine-tune this relationship to improve patient outcomes.” Said Dr. Romina Goldschmidauthor and Stadtmann Research Scientist at the NCI Cancer Research Center.

“While this may one day be important for human cancer treatment, we do not know how and why vitamin D exerts this effect through the microbiome. More research is needed before we can conclusively say that corrective action is effective in preventing or treating cancer.” Said Dr. Caetano Reis e Souza, Senior author and head of the Immunobiology Laboratory at the Francis Crick Institute.

reference: Giampazolias E, Costa MP da, Lam KC, et al. Vitamin D modulates microbiome-dependent cancer immunity. science. 2024.Doi: 10.1126/science.adh7954

This article is Press release issued by Francis Crick Institute. Material has been edited for length and content.