ArticlePloS one2009
Vitamin D status is positively correlated with regulatory T cell function in patients with multiple sclerosis.
Article in PloS one, 2009. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT00940719 (The Effects of Vitamin D3 Supplementation on the T Cell Compartment in Multiple Sclerosis; a Pilot Study), which is not on this map. Cited by 98 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
The Effects of Vitamin D3 Supplementation on the T Cell Compartment in Multiple Sclerosis; a Pilot Study
Who cites it
98 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 267 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effect of vitamin D3 supplementation on systemic inflammation and disease-specific markers in patients with autoimmune diseases: a comprehensive meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Inflammopharmacology · 2026Pooled it
- Maternal and cord blood vitamin D status and childhood infection and allergic disease: a systematic review.Nutrition reviews · 2016Pooled it
- Effect of vitamin D supplementation on N-glycan branching and cellular immunophenotypes in MS.Annals of clinical and translational neurology · 2020Trial
- Intensive statin treatment ameliorate the Th17/Treg functional imbalance in patients with non-ST elevation acute coronary syndrome underwent percutaneous coronary intervention.Clinical cardiology · 2020Trial
- Vitamin D supplementation effects on FoxP3 expression in T cells and FoxP3Immunologic research · 2017Trial
- Trial
- Influence of the season on vitamin D levels and regulatory T cells in patients with polymorphic light eruption.Photochemical & photobiological sciences : Official journal of the European Photochemistry Association and the European Society for Photobiology · 2016Trial
- Vitamin D supplementation and systemic inflammation in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis.Journal of neurology · 2015Trial
- Nutritional vitamin D supplementation in dialysis: a randomized trial.Clinical journal of the American Society of Nephrology : CJASN · 2015Trial
- High-dose cholecalciferol supplementation significantly increases peripheral CD4⁺ Tregs in healthy adults without negatively affecting the frequency of other immune cells.European journal of nutrition · 2014Trial
- Sex-Related Differences in Lifestyle Factors Affecting Multiple Sclerosis Susceptibility and Disease Progression.Brain sciences · 2025Review
- Whole-Body Cryotherapy Affects Blood Vitamin D Levels in People with Multiple Sclerosis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Association of Vitamin D Status with Immune Markers in a Cohort of Healthy Adults.The Journal of nutrition · 2025Article
- Vitamin D as a Modulator of Neuroinflammation: Implications for Brain Health.Current pharmaceutical design · 2024Review
- Epstein-Barr virus, vitamin D and the immune response: connections with consequences for multiple sclerosis.Frontiers in immunology · 2024Review
- The Impact of Vitamin D Deficiency on Infants' Health.Nutrients · 2023Review
- Changes in the Expression of TGF-Beta Regulatory Pathway Genes Induced by Vitamin D in Patients with Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Article
- Review
- Current Updates on the Diagnosis and Management of Multiple Sclerosis for the General Neurologist.Journal of clinical neurology (Seoul, Korea) · 2023Review
- How Does Vitamin D Affect Immune Cells Crosstalk in Autoimmune Diseases?International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
38 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn several autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS), a compromised regulatory T cell (Treg) function is believed to be critically involved in the disease process. In vitro, the biologically active metabolite of vitamin D has been shown to promote Treg development. A poor vitamin D status has been linked with MS incidence and MS disease activity. In the present study, we assess a potential in vivo correlation between vitamin D status and Treg function in relapsing remitting MS (RRMS) patients. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL
findingsSerum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) were measured in 29 RRMS patients. The number of circulating Tregs was assessed by flow-cytometry, and their functionality was tested in vitro in a CFSE-based proliferation suppression assay. Additionally, the intracellular cytokine profile of T helper cells was determined directly ex-vivo by flow-cytometry. Serum levels of 25(OH)D correlated positively with the ability of Tregs to suppress T cell proliferation (R = 0.590, P = 0.002). No correlation between 25(OH)D levels and the number of Tregs was found. The IFN-gamma/IL-4 ratio (Th1/Th2-balance) was more directed towards IL-4 in patients with favourable 25(OH)D levels (R = -0.435, P = 0.023). CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: These results show an association of high 25(OH)D levels with an improved Treg function, and with skewing of the Th1/Th2 balance towards Th2. These findings suggest that vitamin D is an important promoter of T cell regulation in vivo in MS patients. It is tempting to speculate that our results may not only hold for MS, but also for other autoimmune diseases. Future intervention studies will show whether modulation of vitamin D status results in modulation of the T cell response and subsequent amelioration of disease activity.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.