Vitamin D to Decrease Pulmonary Fibrosis
In a new study, researchers demonstrated the protective effects of vitamin D in a mouse model of pulmonary fibrosis induced by the chemotherapeutic drug bleomycin. The research paper, entitled “Preventive effects of vitamin D treatment on bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis,” was published in the Nature journal Scientific Reports.
Vitamin D, often found at low levels in pulmonary fibrosis patients, has been shown to regulate the fibrotic process and be a useful agent in the treatment of fibrosis in different organs, such as bone, kidney and liver. However, despite the theorized correlation between vitamin D deficiency and advanced lung disease, its protective effects on pulmonary fibrosis remains largely unexplored.