1.Cathelicidin LL-37 level in presence and absence of vitamin D in cultured macrophages isolated from elderly women
Joyeta Ghosh ; Aditi Nag Chaudhuri ; Indranil Saha ; Debnath Chaudhuri
Malaysian Journal of Nutrition 2022;28(No.3):327-334
Introduction: Vitamin D deficiency and frequent infections are the two common
worldwide phenomenon among elderly. Recent studies have demonstrated that
vitamin D regulates the expression of specific endogenous antimicrobial peptides
like cathelicidin LL-37 of macrophages and neutrophils, which is active against a
broad spectrum of infectious agents. Therefore, the objective of the present study
was to determine the level of cathelicidin LL-37 in macrophages of elderly women
(classified according to serum 25(OH)D level) after exposure to Vibrio cholera
infection and to find out the effect of 1,25(OH)2D added in vitro. Methods: This study
was conducted among 40 randomly selected rural elderly women aged between
60 to 70 years of age. Their vitamin D status was assessed by the estimation
of serum 25(OH)D and classified into three groups viz. sufficient (14 members),
insufficient (13 members), and deficient (13 members). Later, their peripheral blood
mononuclear cells (PBMC) were isolated and cultured from fresh blood. 1,25(OH)2D
supplementation was given selectively at a dose of 10 ×10-8 M for 72 hours in the
culture media; then exposed to infection and screened according to the objectives of
this study. Results: Macrophages in all groups, except vitamin D deficient group,
responded significantly in terms of LL-37 release during exposure to Vibrio cholera
infection. Considering in vitro 1,25(OH)2D, supplementation responded significantly
(p<0.05) in all three groups. Conclusion: Vitamin D can be used as a prophylaxis
to enhance cathelicidin LL-37 release for all three groups as in the present study.