High-dose vitamin D supplementation and liver histology in NASH

Dear Editor, We read with great interest the recent study by Beilfuss et al,1 which found vitamin D supplementation to ameliorate transforming growth factor-β-induced fibrogenesis in human hepatic stellate cells. Vitamin D is an important secosteroid hormone with pleiotropic effects that extend well beyond its established regulatory role in calcium and bone homeostasis. These include its recently described involvement in the regulation of immunomodulation, cell proliferation and differentiation, as well as anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic properties.2 Subjects with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) have a lower 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] level,3 which is reported to be independently associated with the histological severity of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).4 We recently undertook a prospective pilot study evaluating the impact of high-dose oral vitamin D3 supplementation (25 000 IU/week) over 24 weeks on liver histology and metabolic profile in 12 non-cirrhotic patients with biopsy-proven NASH, defined as a NAFLD Activity...
Source: Gut - Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Tags: PostScript Source Type: research