ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2014
Vitamin D prevents cognitive decline and enhances hippocampal synaptic function in aging rats.
Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 105 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
105 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 222 citations in OpenAlex.
- Risk reduction and precision prevention across the Alzheimer's disease continuum: a systematic review of clinical trials combining multidomain lifestyle interventions and pharmacological or nutraceutical approaches.The journal of prevention of Alzheimer's disease · 2025Pooled it
- Substance use and spine density: a systematic review and meta-analysis of preclinical studies.Molecular psychiatry · 2024Pooled it
- Could VGF and/or its derived peptide act as biomarkers for the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases: A systematic review.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2022Pooled it
- Vitamin D and schizophrenia: 20 years on.Molecular psychiatry · 2021Pooled it
- High-Dose Vitamin D3 Supplementation During Pregnancy and Test-Based Cognitive Performance at Age 10 Years: A Post Hoc Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA network open · 2026Trial
- Synergistic effects of exercise, cognitive training and vitamin D on gait performance and falls in mild cognitive impairment-secondary outcomes from the SYNERGIC trial.Age and ageing · 2025Trial
- Fortification of Yogurts with Vitamin D and Calcium Enhances the Inhibition of Serum Parathyroid Hormone and Bone Resorption Markers: A Double Blind Randomized Controlled Trial in Women over 60 Living in a Community Dwelling Home.The journal of nutrition, health & aging · 2015Trial
- Nutritional status of school-going adolescent girls is associated with their cognitive function but not academic performance: insights from Ten2Twenty-Ghana baseline study.Nutrition journal · 2026Article
- Nutritional biomarkers and three-month symptom changes in antidepressant-free adolescents with major depressive disorder: a retrospective cohort study.BMC pediatrics · 2026Article
- Longitudinal study of dietary intake and risk of persistent tinnitus in 2 large independent cohorts of women.American journal of epidemiology · 2026Article
- Article
- Marine Lipids and Alzheimer's Disease: Biochemistry, Bioaccessibility/Bioavailability, Metabolism, and Health Effects.Marine drugs · 2026Review
- The Role of Vitamin D in Neuropathic Pain: Biological Mechanisms and Clinical Relevance.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Vitamin D Regulates Olfactory Function via Dual Transcriptional and mTOR-Dependent Translational Control of Synaptic Proteins.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Effects of Dietary Vitamin D Levels on Markers Related to Amyloidogenesis and Neuroinflammation in db/db Mice.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Article
- Impact of Vitamin D Status and Supplementation on Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Mood-Cognitive Outcomes: A Structured Narrative Review.Nutrients · 2025Review
- Drivers and mechanisms of cognitive decline in chronic kidney disease.Nature reviews. Nephrology · 2025Review
- Neuroprotective Roles of Vitamin D: Bridging the Gap Between Mechanisms and Clinical Applications in Cognitive Decline.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Mental Health and Kidneys: The Interplay Between Cognitive Decline, Depression, and Kidney Dysfunction in Hospitalized Older Adults.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
45 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
10 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Vitamin D is an important calcium-regulating hormone with diverse functions in numerous tissues, including the brain. Increasing evidence suggests that vitamin D may play a role in maintaining cognitive function and that vitamin D deficiency may accelerate age-related cognitive decline. Using aging rodents, we attempted to model the range of human serum vitamin D levels, from deficient to sufficient, to test whether vitamin D could preserve or improve cognitive function with aging. For 5-6 mo, middle-aged F344 rats were fed diets containing low, medium (typical amount), or high (100, 1,000, or 10,000 international units/kg diet, respectively) vitamin D3, and hippocampal-dependent learning and memory were then tested in the Morris water maze. Rats on high vitamin D achieved the highest blood levels (in the sufficient range) and significantly outperformed low and medium groups on maze reversal, a particularly challenging task that detects more subtle changes in memory. In addition to calcium-related processes, hippocampal gene expression microarrays identified pathways pertaining to synaptic transmission, cell communication, and G protein function as being up-regulated with high vitamin D. Basal synaptic transmission also was enhanced, corroborating observed effects on gene expression and learning and memory. Our studies demonstrate a causal relationship between vitamin D status and cognitive function, and they suggest that vitamin D-mediated changes in hippocampal gene expression may improve the likelihood of successful brain aging.
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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.