Hyderabad: Vitamin D deficiency may trigger cellular stress in heart, ICMR-NIN study finds
HYDERABAD: Vitamin D deficiency may trigger cellular stress in the heart by disrupting antioxidant defences and activating pathways linked to cell injury and death, according to a study by researchers at the ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN), Hyderabad.
The study, published in the journal Steroids on September 2, examined the effects of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency using rat models and experiments on rat cardiac cells.
Researchers found higher levels of oxidative stress and lower activity of antioxidant enzymes in the hearts of vitamin D-deficient rats. The deficiency also reduced activity of the Nrf2 pathway, a cellular defence mechanism involved in protection against oxidative stress.
The study further found increased markers of endoplasmic reticulum stress, autophagy and apoptosis in the hearts of vitamin D-deficient rats.
“We further observed increased markers of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, autophagy and apoptosis in vitamin D-deficient hearts. These findings suggest that prolonged oxidative stress associated with inadequate vitamin D may trigger a cascade of cellular responses that can contribute to cardiac cell injury,” said Dr Ayesha Ismail, Scientist F, who led the research group.
The researchers also exposed rat cardiac cells to oxidative stress in laboratory experiments. The stress reduced cell viability and increased markers associated with oxidative damage, ER stress and apoptosis.
Pretreatment with the active form of vitamin D improved antioxidant responses and reduced markers of cellular stress and apoptosis, the study found. The researchers concluded that vitamin D protected the cells from oxidative injury and cell death by strengthening antioxidant defence mechanisms and reducing endoplasmic reticulum stress.
“This study indicates that adequate vitamin D may help cardiac cells cope with oxidative stress and limit stress-related cellular damage. However, since findings are based on animal and cell models, further investigations in humans are needed,” said Dr Bharati Kulkarni, Director, ICMR-NIN.
Vitamin D deficiency may weaken the heart’s cellular defences… says a new study published in the journal ‘Steroids’ by our researchers led Dr Ayesha Ismail, Scientist F
Full paper – https://t.co/0D3XlvP77y@ICMRDELHI @DeptHealthRes @MoHFW_INDIA pic.twitter.com/GcC1887XPN— ICMR – National Institute of Nutrition (@ICMRNIN) October 1, 2026
The study was authored by Athira Anilkumar Sudharma, Shabna Aboo and Ayesha Ismail of the Department of Endocrinology, ICMR-NIN, Hyderabad. It was published in volume 235-236 of Steroids as article 109849.
